ST. LOUIS — If John Smoltz had picked the other finalist for his services in August, he could be pitching in the NLCS for the Dodgers.
The 42-year-old right-hander said he has zero regrets after signing with the team the Dodgers swept in the division series. The Cardinals plugged Smoltz into their rotation and are considering bringing him back with a one-year deal that could allow the pitcher to exit with a season that lives up to a career destined for the Hall of Fame.
“He definitely wants to pitch,” manager Tony La Russa said. “I definitely think he can pitch. It’s going to be a matter of economics and you never get everything you want, but I speak personally that there’s a lot to the organizational view that John Smoltz was impressive.”
Smoltz, who posted a 4.26 ERA with four quality starts, and had five strikeouts in two innings in his lone postseason appearance, figures he will be on the back burner at the start of free agency while the big-ticket players such as Albert Pujols and Matt Holliday grab the headlines.
But if general manager John Mozeliak calls soon, Smoltz said he won’t need a lot of persuading.
“This would be a great fit,” he said. “This would be a scenario that wouldn’t take too many minutes to make a decision.”
Footnotes.
Mets shortstop Jose Reyes will undergo surgery on his injured right leg today in Dallas.
• Indians outfielder Matt LaPorta underwent two surgeries Tuesday, one on his left hip and the other to fix an injured toe. He will need four to six months to recover.
• Boston pitching coach John Farrell told the Indians he will remain with the Red Sox rather than purse the Cleveland’s vacant managerial position.
• Dave Clark and Al Pedrique met with the Astros, the first of 10 candidates the team says it will interview in a search to replace fired manager Cecil Cooper. Clark was the Astros’ third-base coach in 2009 and took over as interim manager when the team fired Cooper on Sept. 21.
