Marcum, Greinke edging closer to returns

Published Jul. 21, 2012 7:31 p.m. ET

foxsports

By ANDREW GRUMAN
FOXSportsWisconsin.com

Saturday was an important day for a pair of key cogs in the Milwaukee Brewers' rotation, and the results were encouraging.

Zack Greinke and Shaun Marcum each threw prior to Saturday's game against Cincinnati, and both pitchers were pleased with how things went.

Marcum, on the disabled list since June 15 with right elbow tightness, threw 30 pitches off flat ground. Throwing mostly fastballs, Marcum told FOX Sports Wisconsin’s Brian Anderson that all went well.

The next step in Marcum's road back to the rotation is a bullpen session off a mound while the club is in Philadelphia early next week.

Barring any setbacks in the bullpen session, Marcum will then head out for at least a couple of rehab starts before returning to the big league club sometime in early August.

Greinke, who is skipping two turns in the rotation after starting three straight games around the All-Star break, threw a bullpen session in preparation for his Tuesday start against the Phillies.

The Brewers gave Greinke a bit of a break after the right-hander's normal routine was interrupted by the strange schedule he had. Ejected after just four pitches the Saturday before the All-Star break, Greinke started again the next day and then started the Brewers' first game after the break.

Greinke told Anderson that all went according to plan and he will return to the mound Tuesday.