ST. LOUIS -- Reggie Sanders continues to recuperate from his fractured right leg, but has backed off on pinpointing his return date.

Earlier in the week, Sanders had said Sept. 1 was the date he planned to come off the disabled list.

"Somewhere around there," Sanders said on Sunday, revising his earlier statement. "I made a mistake when I gave that date. I said ,'Uh-oh.' So, I'd better backtrack a little bit."

Sanders has been hitting with more pop in his bat during batting practice, but the challenge, he said, is running in the field. Those workouts have been unpredictable for Sanders, and he has yet to do any fielding drills.

"There are good days and bad days," Sanders said. "So far, the good days outweigh the bad days. At this point, that's all I can really ask for."

Sanders said the main focus is trying to strengthen his calf and ankle.

"It's sort of like crawling before you walk," Sanders said. "It's a combination of calf and ankle. I do some manual strengthening with the trainers, some stabilization exercises and some ball work, too."

With Yadier Molina and Larry Walker back, Sanders is the last starter the Cardinals are waiting on to come off the disabled list. Scott Rolen, it was announced on Sunday, will undergo season-ending surgery.

"[The return of injured players is] happening at the right time," Sanders said, "because we'll need all the horses when we go into the postseason."

Sanders is hopeful that the time the bench players received in the starters' absence will create an ideal situation in the postseason.

"Usually, bench players don't get as much time," Sanders said. "We have to filter them in any way that we can, so they can get those at-bats. So, I hope they can continue to stay as hot as they are, and when we call upon them to go out and play again, they do as well as they did."

Walker holding together: Walker said he is perfectly fine after diving for a fly ball in the sixth inning of Saturday's game. Walker was taken out of the game in the seventh in favor of So Taguchi and was not in the starting lineup on Sunday, but said there is nothing to it. He is OK.

"I come to the park every day and look at the lineup Tony [La Russa] puts up just like [the reporters do]," Walker said.

Walker's spill on Saturday prompted starting pitcher Matt Morris to make this comment of his 38-year-old right fielder: "That's the type of guys we've got. I mean, he's, what, 45 years old? And he's diving for balls like that. It's a heck of an effort. Either way, whether he dives or not, I think it gets in the gap, but I appreciate the effort."

Eckstein's father on the mend: David Eckstein finally got a chance to talk to his father, Whitey, who had a kidney transplant on Friday.

Eckstein said he talked to his father around 4 p.m. CT on Saturday as soon as he reached his car after leaving the stadium.

"He's doing well," Eckstein said. "The kidney is doing great. He's in some pain from the surgery, but we couldn't ask for anything better."

Eckstein said his father was well aware of the two games David had played since the surgery.

"I talked to him for 10 minutes," Eckstein said. "He was alert and knew what was going on. He knew about our comeback win on Friday night and knew what I had done. He knew we had won yesterday and was well aware of all the situations."

Whitey gave David "strict orders" not to fly out to Orlando (where the surgery was performed) but to play in the games.

"I had strict orders from Day One that I have a job to do, and I need to do my job," Eckstein said. "I do have four other brothers and sisters who were able to be there, so it wasn't like my mom was by herself or anything like that. But yeah, there were strict orders that I don't come home."

Musical lineup: Walker was not the only big bat held out of Sunday's lineup. Albert Pujols (.335 batting average, 33 home runs and 95 RBIs), Molina (34 RBIs) and Mark Grudzielanek (.303 batting average, 48 RBIs) also got the day off. In Walker's place was Taguchi, while Einar Diaz started behind the plate. John Mabry manned first base, and Abraham Nunez scooted over to second from third base. Nunez's move meant Scott Seabol got the start at third base.

Ray's day: Former Cardinals outfielder Ray Lankford took down the No. 16 sign in right field that signifies how many regular season games are left to be played at Busch Stadium. Lankford is the all-time Busch Stadium home run leader with 123. All but one were with the Cardinals.

Baby 'Birds: A 12-strikeout performance from Adam Wainwright couldn't prevent the Triple-A Memphis Redbirds from dropping their fourth in a row, 4-3, to Iowa. Wainwright pitched seven innings and gave up four runs, but only three were earned. He walked two batters, both intentionally. Catcher Robinson Cancel's throwing error in the sixth allowed the Cubs to score three runs. ... Double-A Springfield's Chris Lambert was roughed up in 1 2/3 innings of work, as Midland cruised to a 15-5 win. Lambert walked four and gave up six runs. Travis Hanson knocked in three runs, two coming on a home run in the eighth. Rick Ankiel's bat stayed hot with a solo home run in the sixth. ... Mike Parisi (4-5) pitched six innings, allowing one run and striking out seven, but it wasn't enough as Class A Palm Beach lost, 2-1, to Brevard County. John Santor drove in Brady Troops for the Cardinals' only run. ... Nick Stravinoha cranked a towering two-run, walkoff home run as Class A Quad Cities slipped by Peoria, 5-4. For Stravinoha, it was his second home run of the night, as he hit a solo shot earlier in the game. The game-winning homer, which wrapped around the left-field foul pole, was a close enough call that Peoria manager Julio Garcia was ejected for arguing it was foul. Chris Patrick also had two dingers, with solo shots in the fifth and seventh innings. Starting pitcher Phil Anderson worked 6 1/3 innings, allowing three runs (two earned) on five hits, walking one and striking out 11. Jaymie Torres (4-2) earned the win in relief. ... Quinton Robertson (1-2) pitched his best game of the year for short-season New Jersey as they won, 5-3, over Staten Island. Robertson allowed just two runs in 7 1/3 innings and scattered nine hits. Ashley Hooks tossed a perfect ninth inning for his first save of the year. Sean Danielson drove in two runs with a pair of singles, and Chad Gabriel belted a two-run homer. ... Colby Rasmus and Jose Martinez both homered for the Johnson City Cardinals of rookie ball in a 12-8 win over Danville.

This Day in Busch Stadium history -- Aug. 21, 1979: The San Diego Padres nipped the Cardinals, 3-2, in 11 innings.

Padres third baseman Kurt Bevaqua singled home Paul Dade in the 11th inning for the win.

St. Louis was down, 1-0, but took a 2-1 lead in the eighth inning when Ken Reitz's RBI single scored Tom Herr and George Hendrick.

On deck: The Cardinals hit the road for a 13-game road trip. Their first stop is Pittsburgh, where lefty Mark Mulder (14-6, 3.87 ERA) will go up against right-handed pitcher Josh Fogg (6-8, 5.07 ERA).