John Lackey will throw a bullpen session Tuesday, placing him on track to start Friday's game, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

Lackey will throw a bullpen session Tuesday, placing him on track to start Friday's game, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

Analysis:

The Cardinals made the call to skip Lackey's start Tuesday to allow Lance Lynn, Adam Wainwright and Shelby Miller to pitch on normal rest. Lackey has struggled lately, allowing eight earned runs on 13 hits over his last two starts (8.0 innings), so the team hopes the extra day off will allow him to be as physically ready as possible for Friday's projected start against Cincinnati.