Whitson to Get More Tests on Elbow

It’s creepy and it’s kooky, mysterious and spooky--and the impending Padres pitching rotation continues to take on an altogether new shape daily.

The first two games of their home stand here have provided mostly gems, with one potentially large brick: the condition of Ed Whitson, who took his sore elbow back to Ohio for further medical exams after spending less than 24 hours in camp.

Whitson, suffering pain on the inside of the right elbow, will undergo an arthro-CAT scan later this week in Birmingham under the direction of Dr. James Andrews, who performed off-season surgery on Whitson’s elbow to remove bone spurs.

Whitson said this injury is not related to the surgery, and a magnetic resonance imaging done last week showed no tear, but the discomfort has become worrisome. Before leaving Saturday, Whitson said, “If anything has to be done, it’s better to do it now than wait till the middle of the season. I’ll just have to wait to talk to Doc Andrews and see what his opinion is.”

Padres General Manager Joe McIlvaine said, “The big thing is tests showed no tear. Still, it’s a big concern. We thought it was just a strain but it’s turned out to be something much more than that.”

With Whitson out indefinitely, the left-hander the Padres have been trying to trade is looking like the ace of the staff this spring.

Craig Lefferts, attempting to become a starter after eight seasons as a reliever, is a contender to be in the rotation on opening day.

“He was dealing, wasn’t he?” Manager Greg Riddoch said after Lefferts threw six innings of two-hit ball Friday against Seattle. “He’s basically looked the best of anybody starting for us. It’s there in black and white.

“Plus he’s got 18 innings in. Nobody else has more than 11.”

In the longest outing of the spring by a Padre, Lefferts threw 78 pitches Friday, allowing only two hits.

“I’m tired. I’m stiff. I’m sore,” Lefferts said with a smile Saturday. “I was tapped out. Next time, hopefully, I can go 85, 90 pitches. I really just need to extend myself to pitching six or seven innings and not feel bad the next day.”

Lefferts appeared to be odd man out when the Padres acquired bullpen closer Randy Myers from Cincinnati over the winter, but Whitson’s injury and slow springs by Andy Benes and Greg Harris put Lefferts in the starting picture.