Power tip: appendectomy

ST. LOUIS -- Undergoing an appendectomy in the middle of spring training easily could have thrown Reggie Sanders off his game. Especially at his advanced baseball age of 37.

Instead, he's been the most productive bat in a struggling lineup thus far for the St. Louis Cardinals. Sanders, who's been called the best No. 7 hitter in baseball, leads a team that is hitting only .228 in both home runs (4) and RBIs (8) while batting .286.

"He may be in the best shape of anybody on the team," manager Tony La Russa said. "And he's very young mentally. I'm not saying he's a baby, I'm saying he's young at heart.

"I thought it was amazing when he came back after the procedure."

Sanders was surprised, too. He missed only 10 days and homered in the first two spring training games when he returned.

"Initially it was 'You've got to go to the hospital. What? Then you're going under and we've got a week or two to go," Sanders said. "But I'm a young guy and I heal very fast."

A new offseason weight training regimen helped. Sanders lifts and hoists old 70-pound cannonballs equipped with handles to increase flexibility and core strength.

His unique spring training approach might have been beneficial, too. For the first several games he concentrated on pitch recognition, often passing up swings so he could develop a visual strategy, and the appendectomy didn't cause him to abandon his plan.

"My objective was to see a lot of pitches and it's helped me thus far," Sanders said. "It was not being afraid of whatever the results were, knowing I have a game plan and sticking with that game plan."

Sanders has a lofty goal for this season, his first 30-homer, 30-steal year. He had 22 homers and 21 steals last year, but has a pair of 30-homer seasons the last four seasons.

The closest he came was in 1995 with the Reds when he had 28 homers and 36 steals.

No one is putting that out of reach with the Cardinals, where he's settled in after years of a nomadic existence in the major leagues. This is his second season in St. Louis, which last year became his seventh team in seven seasons.

"He's been the butt of a lot of (jokes) and he's catching a lot of irritation and aggravation, all in good fun," La Russa said. "We enjoy having him here and I think he enjoys being here."

Noteworthy

* Fans can purchase Busch Stadium seats at $470 per pair, including shipping and mounting hardware, beginning at 9 a.m. Saturday via www.stlcardinals.com, by phone at 421-2400 or at the Busch Stadium box office. The seats will be available soon after the end of the season when the stadium is demolished to make way for the new Busch Stadium being built next door. The team estimates that about 12,000 pairs will be available for purchase.

* RHP Matt Morris threw 85 pitches in his final tuneup in Vero Beach, Fla., on Wednesday in preparation for his season debut Tuesday in Pittsburgh. The Cardinals didn't need a fifth starter until then because of days off, allowing Morris additional time to rehab from offseason shoulder surgery.

* Backup IF Abraham Nunez fractured a rib in a collision at second base on Wednesday and may have to be placed on the 15-day disabled list. Trainer Barry Weinberg said it was a pain tolerance issue.