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Cardinals' Martinez headed to bullpen upon return

Dilip Vishwanat / Getty Images Sport / Getty

The St. Louis Cardinals are eagerly awaiting right-hander Carlos Martinez's return from the disabled list, though he's not going to serve in his familiar role upon activation.

In an effort to bring Martinez back sooner, the Cardinals will have him pitch out of the bullpen for the remainder of the season.

"If you're going to go down that starting path and you're starting at ground zero, the likelihood of him being back would be sometime in mid-September," president of baseball operations John Mozeliak said, according to MLB.com's Jenifer Langosch. "And we've done that twice this year and ended up in the same place after a few starts."

On the shelf with a strained shoulder, Martinez has spent three stints on the DL this season. When healthy, he's typically been his reliable self, posting a 3.41 ERA with 98 strikeouts over 100 1/3 innings in 18 starts.

He threw a 30-pitch bullpen session Monday and will have another before testing his shoulder on a short rehab assignment.

With the 26-year-old in the bullpen, the Cardinals will continue to rely on Miles Mikolas, Jack Flaherty, Luke Weaver, John Gant, and Austin Gomber to start games. Michael Wacha, out with an oblique strain since late June, could begin a rehab assignment next week.

Martinez will return to the role he primarily served in 2013 and 2014 before fully transitioning into a starter. He's expected to return to the rotation in spring training.

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