Cardinals' Molina had 'no problems' with injured thumb Friday
Three weeks removed from tearing a ligament in his left thumb, Yadier Molina was back behind the plate for the St. Louis Cardinals' 4-0 shutout win over the Chicago Cubs.
"Yes, very good. No problems," Molina told reporters of his injured thumb. When asked if there was any discomfort catching with a splint, he replied "No, no, no. Like I said, everything was good so hopefully tomorrow it stays that way.
"A Game 1 win, I mean, it is huge," he continued. "We have to come back strong tomorrow."
The 33-year-old didn't offer much at the plate, batting 0-for-3 with a strikeout but his game-calling ability came up huge for the Cardinals as John Lackey, Kevin Siegrist, and Trevor Rosenthal combined for 10 strikeouts in nine scoreless innings.
"You know, I'm so impressed with him today," manager Mike Matheny said. "When he’s got that kind of energy and life and you can see it’s infectious when he gets behind the plate."
To have the seven-time All-Star and two-time World Series champion back in the lineup is a huge boost for the National League Central champions, and Molina's teammates agree his presence on the field has been missed in recent weeks.
"It's big," Cardinals outfielder Randal Grichuk added. "Any time you get Yadier back there it's huge. The things he does and brings to the team, you can't even say them all."
Molina and the Cardinals will have their chance to take a commanding 2-0 series lead Saturday.