JUPITER, Fla. — Weather: 82 degrees, partly cloudy
Result: Marlins 6, Cardinals 4
Spring training will end in a couple of days for almost all of the Cardinals, but it is really just beginning again for Kwang Hyun Kim.
Tightness in his back, suffered when he tried to throw too hard in a bullpen session, forced Kim to miss a good chunk of the spring before he got back on the mound Saturday night.
It was his first appearance in a main spring game since March 8, and his two-inning stint was only one less than he had thrown in his first two starts this spring combined.
“I had it in my mind to be careful with my back,” Kim said through a team interpreter. “It was just great to be back.”
Kim allowed triples to the first two hitters he faced, then gave up a sacrifice fly before getting two groundouts. In his second inning, he allowed just one two-out single as he struck out one and got two more groundouts.
“It’s a process to prepare for the season,” Kim said.
Manager Mike Shildt said it was natural that Kim started out a little slow, even though he had pitched in a simulated game since he was injured.
“Still feeling it a little bit, making sure everything was working,” Shildt said. “Everything’s checked out but getting in that competition you get the other team jersey going, you get the fans going, you feel that. I think he started trusting what he was doing and feeling good. He got more comfortable in the second inning and clearly had a better inning.”
Kim will remain in Florida next week when the Cardinals head to Cincinnati to open the season (3:10 p.m. Thursday). He will continue to work in simulated games or perhaps make a B game appearance in his next few outings. The Cardinals want him to be able to pitch at least five innings before adding him to the roster and putting him back in the rotation.
“He’s a pro, he gets it, he’s a competitor and wants to be out there,”
Shildt said. “He understands where we’re at and he’s in a good spot. We mapped out what his plan will be based on him feeling good and it looked like tonight he checked that box.
“I don’t think he’s going to be too far off once we get started.”
Here is how Saturday night’s game broke down:
High: Yadier Molina had three hits, including a double, and Tyler O’Neill had two hits, drove in two runs and stole his third base of the spring.
Low: Paul DeJong struck out in three of his five at-bats, although he did also single in a run.
At the plate: Paul Goldschmidt hit his second homer of the spring, and both he and Nolan Arenado, who had a double, finished with two hits … Justin Williams, who could perhaps make the team and be the starting right fielder on opening day, was hitless in four at-bats, striking out twice.
On the mound: Jack Flaherty worked three innings in his final tune-up before his start on Thursday, allowing an unearned run. He struck out four and did not walk a batter … Genesis Cabrera allowed a run in his inning of work before Alex Reyes and Kodi Whitley each worked a scoreless inning.
Worth noting: Shildt said the team had “some clarity” on its final roster decisions and the team is expected to make that announcement perhaps as early as Sunday … Shildt did confirm the order for the starting pitchers for the first six games of the season. Following Flaherty will be Adam Wainwright and Carlos Martinez for the games in Cincinnati, with Daniel Ponce de Leon and John Gant starting the first two games in Miami before Flaherty makes his second start … A 16-year-old Cuban outfielder, Luis Mario Pino, announced on social media that he had signed with the Cardinals but the team has not confirmed the signing of the international free agent.
Up next: Wainwright will get the start in Sunday’s game against the Nationals in West Palm Beach.
Follow Rob Rains on Twitter @RobRains
