Joe Strauss for the Post-Dispatch:

Carpenter, 37, acknowledged last Friday that he would continue to throw until it became clear there was no hope of soon returning to the Cardinals’ rotation. Carpenter said if he reached such a point he would consider other options. Surgery is among them.

Resistant to surgery when the same condition forced his shutdown in August 2008, Carpenter has been told he likely requires the procedure to extend his career.

I’m not an expert—merely a fan—but I would not be surprised to see Carpenter take this cue to retire and end his career at the top of his game, after a championship run last season and the best pitching performance I have seen in my life.

And he’d be forever loved in St. Louis.