ST. LOUIS -- Ever since Kwang Hyun Kim first arrived in the United States in December 2019, it’s been a laundry list of firsts: His first time playing in the Majors, his first time living overseas away from his family and his first time going through the grind of 162 games.
Now add another first to that list.
The Cardinals left-hander will make his first Minor League rehab appearance for Triple-A Memphis on Thursday, manager Mike Shildt said prior to Wednesday’s tilt against the Brewers, where Kim will be asked to throw 35-40 pitches as he works his way back from a bout of left elbow inflammation.
Kim was on his way to Memphis on Wednesday, given a rather quick green light for action after the Cardinals had been cautious with the 33-year-old since he was said to have issues recovering from his last start on Aug. 7. Kim was given an injection as part of his recovery, though Shildt wasn’t sure which kind when asked.
Kim will be built back up as a starter, Shildt said, but those plans could change. As it stands, the Cardinals have just four healthy starters, though Miles Mikolas’ return on Friday will give them five. With Kim and Wade LeBlanc hoping to return in September, that’ll give the Cardinals seven healthy starters for five spots.
Kim and LeBlanc both have bullpen experience, with Kim earning the save in his first Major League game last July, and LeBlanc providing multiple innings out of the bullpen when he was first signed in June. That’ll likely play into the calculus since the remaining five starters -- Mikolas, Jack Flaherty, Adam Wainwright, Jon Lester and J.A. Happ -- are bonafide starters, whereas Kim has had his struggles pitching deep into games this year.
“There's an opportunity to see how he feels and evaluate where he is -- where we're at -- and go from there,” Shildt said. “Biggest thing, we want to make sure -- is he able to go out and throw and recover? And then once that happens, we'll be able to take the next steps that are necessary.”
It’ll be touch-and-go, but it’ll be a feeling of depth the Cardinals have longed to have, from rushing young pitchers into the Majors this season as a way to simply cover innings from June through the end of July to now employing three starters over 37, an ace in Flaherty and a workhorse in Mikolas.
This is the third injury Kim has suffered this season, after he went down with lower back stiffness in Spring Training and then missed a start in June with an identical injury after jarring the ailment while running the bases. The first one came before the start of the Minor League season, though Kim worked out at the temporary alternate training site, and the second one wasn't serious enough to require a rehab start.
And this one has required more tepidness, given the risk that elbow injuries can run. Memphis will in turn get its first glimpse of "KK."
Spring Training schedule released
Can you feel spring just around the corner?
Baseball en masse released the 2022 Spring Training schedule. Included among the highlights for the Cardinals are home-and-home matchups with the Yankees in Tampa and the Tigers in Lakeland, Fla. Otherwise, the team’s slate is confined to the Grapefruit League East teams -- the Astros, Nationals, Mets and Marlins -- like it was in ’21, starting with Houston for the opening of the slate on Feb. 26.