TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — St. Louis Cardinals manager Mike Matheny has had surgery to repair a ruptured disk in his lower back. Matheny had the procedure on Monday in St. Louis. Before leaving the team on Sunday, Matheny said he expected to be back at spring training for Thursday’s game against Atlanta in Jupiter. The 42-year-old Matheny, who replaced Tony La Russa as manager after the 2011 season, said early in spring training that the injury probably traces back to his days as a big league catcher from 1994-06.

Bench coach Mike Aldrete is managing the team in Matheny’s absence.