Carlos Martinez, officially, has thrown his last ball for the regular season and there is very little chance he would reappear even if the Cardinals made a long playoff run—if they run into the playoffs at all.
Martinez was diagnosed Thursday with the dreaded (left) oblique strain suffered while facing his final hitter Wednesday in a 12-3 debacle in Kansas City in which he allowed eight runs. The 29-year-old righthander was placed on the 10-day injured list and Johan Oviedo, who was going to be brought up on Sunday, joined the club a few days early and will work out of the bullpen during the five-game series with the Milwaukee Brewers, which begins on Thursday night at Busch Stadium.