Mike Nadel: Albert's elbow is no funny bone

Albert Pujols wonders why everyone keeps talking about "the dang elbow." After all, the National League Player of the Millennium says, "If it blows out, it's gonna blow out."

Hello! Albert! That's why we keep talking about the dang elbow!

Spring training is a place for happy, hopeful words such as: "If Albert stays healthy and the pitching comes through, the Cardinals have a chance," and "Sweet Lou promises Cubbie Swagger," and "Maybe the Pirates can win 80 this season (but we'll take 75)."

"High-grade tear of the ulnar collateral ligament," and "Not curable without Tommy John surgery," and "If it blows out, it's gonna blow out" ... those are not especially uplifting phrases.

Buying into the whole spring-equals-hope thing, several Cardinals have made a respectable case for St. Louis being the NL Central's surprise team. As Adam Wainwright says: "We'll open some eyes. We've got tons of young guys. We're hungry."

Well, if Albert Pujols misses significant action while resting his sore right elbow -- or, even worse, if the big first baseman no longer can take the pain and decides to undergo surgery that will sideline him until spring training '09 -- the Cardinals won't be merely hungry. They'll be starving ... for RBIs, home runs, leadership and star power.

Tony La Russa's teams always have great work ethic because the manager sets a great example. This spring, some of his hardest work has come in his almost daily efforts to downplay Pujols' elbow situation.

"He's just been really careful with it," La Russa said. "He's trying to be smart about it ... and so far, so good."

Nice try, Tony. Baseball is the ultimate reaction game. In fact, slumping players often blame "thinking too much" for their woes. So how can a gifted ballplayer such as Pujols, whose ability to react makes him a perennial MVP candidate, "try to be smart"?

"You don't make crazy throws in spring training," La Russa said. "Swinging, you're not trying to hit the ball 500 feet."

Avoiding "crazy throws," I get. But while homering in his last two games, Pujols wasn't swinging softly. As he attacked the baseball, raising his exhibition average to .471, he wasn't thinking about protecting the elbow ligament he tore five years ago (with arthritis, bone spurs and inflammation piling on to make last season his most painful yet).

Last month, La Russa said the problem affected Pujols' stroke in 2007, when the six-time All-Star had a good-for-anybody-else-but-pedestrian-for-Albert season: 103 RBIs, 32 HRs, .327 batting average, .568 slugging percentage. The other day, however, the manager insisted: "He won't change his approach."

Which is it?

Finally, La Russa on Saturday said he understands why Cardinal Nation is worried sick: "There's no better player in Major League Baseball. And if you're diagnosed with an injury like that -- a tear -- there's no way to disregard it. There's always a chance that ... during the game, you're chasing pitches or doing something funny and you tweak it."

Tweak. Another not-so-fun word. If I had a dollar for every time Kerry Wood and Mark Prior tweaked something in spring training, I'd have enough money to buy the Cubs and rename their ballpark Wait 'Til Next Year Field.

Really, though, what are Pujols and the Cardinals supposed to do about his situation?

"We've been managing this problem since 2003," team physician Dr. George Paletta told St. Louis beat writers. "But there comes a time when it's not manageable anymore. If his elbow ... gives him significant problems again, then I think the horse is out of the barn and he should probably consider having the whole thing done."

Still, Paletta believes Pujols isn't risking long-term damage by playing now. Albert is a fierce competitor; even though the young Cards are more likely to contend in 2009, he hates the idea of just throwing away 2008. Statistically, the 28-year-old slugger's career arc is similar to those of Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio, Ted Williams, Jimmy Foxx and Al Simmons -- so he wants to keep hammering. And the Cardinals know he is irreplaceable.

"We have a shot at this," La Russa said, "and we want to keep him in the lineup."

Can't blame him there.

In the end, it will come down to how much pain Albert Pujols can tolerate. Mostly, it will come down to luck. If the dang elbow blows, it definitely will blow for the Cardinals.

Mike Nadel (mikenadel@sbcglobal.net) is a GateHouse News Service sports columnist. Read his blog, The Baldest Truth, at www.thebaldesttruth.com <http://www.thebaldesttruth.com> .