The Cardinals hope to get infielder Felipe Lopez back on Friday night against the Giants. He was all but unavailable for the team's last two games this week against the Diamondbacks. Lopez insisted Wednesday that elbow discomfort that had followed him since the team's first road trip has gradually gone away, though he did feel more discomfort after pitching a scoreless inning in last Saturday's marathon against the Mets. "It's a lot better than it was a couple days ago," said Lopez. "I'd be surprised if I couldn't go (tonight). It bothered me the other night, but it's improved a lot." Lopez pulled himself from his relief appearance against the Mets, saying afterward that "I didn't want to overdo it." At the time, the Cardinals didn't know Lopez had hurt himself while making a sliding defensive play in Milwaukee more than a week earlier.