(By Rob Rains) JUPITER, Fla. – Allen Craig’s day during the early portion of the Cardinals’ spring training camp begins just as his teammates’ day of workouts is ending.

As his teammates get dressed to head for the golf course, the beach or to lounge around the swimming pool, Craig is getting ready to spend the next several hours in the weight room, rehabbing his right knee and leg after last November’s surgery.

The 27-year-old Craig is about three months into the recovery following the surgery on his fractured right kneecap, an injury which occurred when he collided with a wall in Houston while attempting to catch a foul ball.

The injury forced him to miss 54 games, exactly one-third of the season, before he returned to the lineup on Aug. 10. He came back with a vengeance as well, hitting five of his 11 homers for the season in September and knocking in 12 of his 40 RBIs in a 20-game span, which included only 10 starts. 

He saved his biggest moments for the World Series, however, when he hit three of his four postseason home runs and caught the final out to secure the Cardinals’ 11^th World Championship.

Even then Craig knew he was playing through pain on a wounded knee which would require surgery, and more months of rehab, he was able to find success and enjoy the moment.

“I was hurting a little bit but I tell people I wasn’t in excruciating pain,” Craig said. “It was just an annoyance and it was stiff and just something I needed to get taken care of. But the World Series was a huge confidence builder all the way around, regardless of being injured. Just being able to be on that stage with the guys and perform and win it was a great experience.”

Getting back to playing with his teammates as soon as possible is now the uppermost thought on Craig’s mind now. Until he is cleared to begin baseball activities, he is trying to make the best of his current situation.

“I’ve made a lot of progress since the day I had the surgery,” Craig said Wednesday. “I’m excited with where I’m at. It’s been a long road but I’ve been working hard every day to try and get back and it’s kind of a tough thing because you want to push it and try to get back as soon as you can, but you have to stay patient at the same time and that’s kind of where I’m at, but I feel good.”

Craig’s goal ever since undergoing the surgery was to be back available to play by opening day of the regular season and he has not backed away from wanting that to be the case – even though others have said that might be unlikely. Manager Mike Matheny is a little more cautious, partially because he does not want to put an unrealistic timetable in front of Craig and prompt him to cut short the rehab process and risk further injury.

“The medical staff has a battery of tests that they run to monitor his progress and when they think he’s ready he will take the next step,” Matheny said Wednesday. “He’s right on track, he’s working hard. He’s motivated to prove people wrong.”

Craig’s current goal is to get his right leg stronger and the bulk of the exercises he is doing every day are targeted for that immediate goal.

“I have to get my right quad stronger because when I had the surgery that leg kind of shut down,” Craig said. “That’s kind of where all the attention is at right now, getting that stronger. It’s not to say that I couldn’t go out and play catch and hit in the cage right now but we’re kind of using all the energy I have in the day to work out in the gym. I’m anticipating getting out on the field hopefully pretty soon and stretching and doing some agilities and playing catch with the guys, and hopefully working my way in as camp goes.

“I want to be a baseball player again and working out in the gym is not really being a baseball player – it’s getting out there and playing catch and hitting and stuff and that time will come. I’m just trying to keep my emotions on a plain line and not get carried away with being upset about not being out there and playing because that will take away from my workouts.”

The last time he was playing baseball, in the World Series, Craig was having the most fun of his career – and showing that he can be a major contributor to the Cardinals. His playing time likely will not be as great as it would have been had the team not signed free agent outfielder Carlos Beltran, who checked into camp on Wednesday, but he understood and approved of the move.

“I don’t know that they wouldn’t have signed him even if I was healthy,” Craig said. “It was one of those things where Albert (Pujols) left and we needed to improve the team. From my perspective, if you’re a smart player, you look at how much fun we had last year winning the World Series and how much fun it is to win and you want any possible way to improve the team, so I don’t really worry about that stuff. I’m just focused on getting myself healthy and I think the best players will play and I believe in myself. That’s kind of where I’m at.”

When he is able to play, Craig likely will find himself in a super utility role for the time being, moving around the field to give Matt Holliday, Beltran and Lance Berkman a day off when needed. If Beltran moves over to play center in place of Jon Jay on occasion, Craig also could see some additional playing time.

He just wants that day to come sooner rather than later.

“I’m pretty much pain free, it’s more about just getting stronger in my legs and stuff like that,” Craig said. “Obviously there are certain challenges that I still face in the weight room and with certain agilities but I haven’t taken any steps back, so I’m improving every week and were adding more to my workouts every week. I’m feeling good.

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