Saturday, August 2, 2008

Glavine headed to Myrtle Beach

Braves lefty Tom Glavine is getting better and may be close to pitching again this season for Atlanta. The forty-two year old who has not pitched since June 11 is scheduled to begin a rehab assignment in Class-A Myrtle Beach this Monday and if all goes well, Glavine will follow up with an appearance in Class-AA Mississippi next Saturday. Glavine suffered a “small tear at the origin of the flexor tendon in his pitching elbow” according to GM Frank Wren in a June contest in Chicago and while doctors said surgery wasn’t necessary, the wound had to “scar over” before he could pitch again. Glavine, Wren and the rest of the organization watched as Glavine resumed throwing a few weeks ago and feel that he is ready for the rehab assignment, despite the fact that the Braves post-season chances are slim. Glavien has missed 40 games this season with his first trips to the DL in his long career and as a team, 869 games have been missed by 18 different players with 23 total DL appearances.

Glavine’s return to the rotation though would certainly help the staff as the team ERA for July was 5.27, the highest it has been for one calendar month since July 2006. If Glavine can come back this season he has a chance to make some history: with only eight strikeouts, he can pass Chuck Finley for 23rd on the all-time strikeout list. This season, Glavine is 2-3 in 12 starts with a 4.85 ERA.

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