The phrase Cardinals fans were dreading with regards to Rafael Furcal's nagging elbow injury have been written; Furcal is going to see Dr. James Andrews, according to general manager John Mozeliak.
The oft-injured Furcal was hoping to make his debut soon, but was shut down instead. Furcal tore ligaments in his right elbow in August and was placed on the disabled list for the rest of the year. This spring, Furcal has experienced steady, worsening pain in the elbow because of a bone spur, per St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Furcal has also felt pain return to the ligament area, which is alarming the front office.
Hope of Furcal being available on Opening Day is dwindling quickly. Mozeliak said, "The probability of him being able to play on Opening Day [April 1] is a long shot," to the Post-Dispatch. Manager Mike Matheny showed concern as well, when he spoke to reporters. "It kind of went in a bad direction. I don't know the severity of it, but it's not good news. ... He's done quite a bit of rehab and to go backward isn't a good sign."
If Furcal requires ligament replacement surgery, missing Opening Day will be an afterthought to the specter of being out for the whole season. Position players typically take four to six months to recover from it. Furcal hasn't been able to make a full-strength throw since he first suffered the injury.
Furcal has played in 150 games just once since 2007. He is 35 years old and his production has declined in the last two seasons. In addition to batting averages that are falling into the mid-to-low .200s, his defense has slipped as well. According to Fangraphs.com, his UZR last season was -8.6, meaning he cost St. Louis almost nine runs with his play. He posted a -5.4 UZR between the Dodgers and Cardinals in 2011. Pete Kozma and Ronny Cedeno will be battling for the opportunity to play short while Furcal tries to heal his elbow.
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