A Pitcher Full of Joy

A few weeks ago St. Louis Cardinals ace Chris Carpenter strode off the field in Kansas City, having pitched a masterful game. He went 7.2 innings, gave up only one run and three hits to secure a 7-1 victory over their cross-state rivals, the Royals.

In the dugout, Carpenter’s teammates applauded. He had pitched the Cardinals into first place. A smile crept onto the corners of Carpenter’s mouth. In the past, it wasn’t an emotion the intense pitcher would easily show. But after enduring two arm surgeries that cost him nearly three full seasons and could have ended his career, the 34-year-old right-hander has learned to take joy in the game when he can.

It has been a tough lesson for Carpenter, a fierce and self-critical competitor.

“I expect a lot of myself,” he said before a recent game against the New York Mets at Citi Field, their brand new stadium.

When healthy, Carpenter is among baseball’s premier pitchers. Four years ago, in 2005, he won 21 games, was the National League’s starting pitcher in the All-Star Game and won the Cy Young Award as the league’s top hurler. In 2006 he won 15 regular-season games, and then pitched eight innings of shutout ball to lead the Cardinals to a 5-0, Game three World Series victory over the Detroit Tigers.

Carpenter seemed on his way to greatness. Then, opening day of the 2007 season, he tore his elbow. Surgery followed, and then long, lonely months of difficult rehab. Carpenter knew the uphill battle he faced, just to get back on the mound. A previous shoulder operation has cost him the entire 2003 season. He pitched just four games over the next two years. Full recovery was far from certain.

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