Alan Benes Pitches To Batters

July 2, 1999 / 9:03 PM EDT / AP

St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Alan Benes, on a long comeback trail from two shoulder operations, faced batters Friday for the first time in two years.

Several hours before the Cardinals played the Diamondbacks, the right-hander threw 25 pitches off the mound, 15 to David Howard and 10 to Placido Polanco.

He's going to test the arm again on Monday, then throw in a simulated game. A rehabilitation stint would follow if there are no problems.

"I don't expect to come back right away with the stuff I had two years ago," Benes said. "I just want to be able to go out there and not worry about the shoulder."

Benes, 27, said he could be working out of the bullpen within three weeks, and expects to be back in the major leagues by August.

"I've had my heart set on coming back all season, at some point," he said. "I did great. I feel great."

Before he was sidelined by a partially torn rotator cuff in July 1997, Benes was the dominant pitcher on the staff. He was 9-9 with a 2.89 ERA and 160 strikeouts in 161 2-3 innings that year and had surgery that September and again in September 1998.

Before the game, the Cardinals optioned left-hander Mike Mohler to Triple-A Memphis and recalled right-hander Mike Busby.

Mohler was 1-0 with a 5.34 ERA and one save in 27 games. Busby was 1-0 with a 6.12 ERA in 17 games at Memphis with 26 strikeouts in 25 innings. He was 0-1 with a 7.50 in 12 games with the Cardinals earlier in the season before his May 10 demotion.