Best news for Reds fans this offseason: Pete Schourek is throwing - without pain.
Schourek, the left-handed ace of the starting rotation, is coming off July 17 elbow surgery.
''The progress has been good,'' Schourek said Monday from his offseason home in Clinton, Va.
He has been throwing - playing catch and long tossing - for 2 1/2 weeks. If Schourek re-emerges as the top starter, the pitching rotation could be better than it was last year.
Schourek's surgery was not nearly as serious as the procedure Jose Rijo is still trying to come back from.
Schourek's surgery did not involve reconstructing a ligament, as was feared. Instead, Dr. Lew Yocum alleviated pressure on a nerve in Schourek's elbow, then cleaned out scar tissue from a previous surgery.
''It felt pretty good right after the surgery,'' Schourek said.
Schourek, 27, was ineffective (4-5 with a 6.01 ERA) last year. But he is a year removed from an 18-7, 3.22-ERA season in which he finished second in the Cy Young voting to Greg Maddux.
Schourek sees no reason he can't pitch that way again.
''Everything's going great,'' he said. ''I'm really ahead of schedule. My normal routine is I go to Florida the first of February and get ready for spring training. I wanted to throw sooner this year, in case I have a setback.''
Schourek and the Reds agreed to a $2.64 million, one-year contract last week. That is the 20 percent maximum pay cut allowed under the basic agreement. But Schourek can earn $3.3 million - as he did in 1996 - by reaching incentives.
Right now, coming back is incentive enough.
''I'm really excited,'' he said.
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