Montero, Bloomquist move closer to rehab stints

PHOENIX -- A pair of injured D-backs position players could begin rehab assignments as soon as the end of the week. Both Willie Bloomquist (left hand) and Miguel Montero (lower back) began swinging the bat over the weekend after returning to baseball activities in the field.

On the disabled list since the beginning of August, Montero took batting practice and participated in blocking drills Monday.

"We'll put a plan together and maybe towards the end of the week we can start catching him a little bit," D-backs manager Kirk Gibson said. "My guess is he'd probably catch three innings or so at first and maybe get an at-bat."

Although his manager is trying to take his recovery slow, Montero reiterated Monday his desire to return to the lineup as soon as possible.

"I feel like I'm ready," he said.

As for Bloomquist, his broken hand has finally healed enough for the veteran infielder to handle a bat again. He had been taking grounders for the last week after being sidelined since June 28.

"He's champing at the bit," Gibson said. "He wants to get going. He wants to start playing somewhere."