Cardinals' Wainwright 'all systems go' following elbow surgery

Fear not, St. Louis Cardinals fans, staff ace Adam Wainwright has declared himself ready for spring training following a throwing session Friday.

"It didn't sound like I had a baseball card stuck in the spokes of my bike when I threw," Wainwright joked to Derrick Goold from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. "There was no pain. That's pretty good. That's good as far as signs go."

The right-hander underwent offseason surgery after damaged cartilage caused discomfort in his throwing elbow. The elbow trouble didn't stop Wainwright from winning 20 games and tossing 227 regular-season innings, however, and then pressing on into October during the Cardinals' playoff run.

"I've been working out 100 percent now for the past two or three weeks," Wainwright added. "I was on a modified upper-body lifting schedule before that. Now all systems are go. Feels like a normal offseason again.

The 33-year-old will once again be counted on to lead a formidable pitching staff which also includes John Lackey, Lance Lynn, Michael Wacha and Carlos Martinez.

There are also rumors the Cardinals could be a dark horse to sign free-agent hurler Max Scherzer, which would transform the starting rotation instantly into one of the best in baseball.