Rick Ankiel may be the best 22-year-old pitcher in the world.

He's got phenomenal arm strength and a simply breathtaking curve. He is smart, and driven, and a lot more resilient than anyone seems to realize. He has made significant strides towards recovering from his horrifying breakdown last October. He has control of his pitches again -- 148 strikeouts to just 15 walks in 82 innings, along with a 0.99 ERA at rookie-level Johnson City, Tenn. Isn't that good enough?

Maybe not.

In the hurry to rubberstamp their team's future ace as "rehabilitated," St. Louis fans want to put Ankiel right back on the fast track to Cooperstown. Why?

Not because Ankiel is screaming for the call -- he's happy, for now. Not because he needs major league hitters to help him hone his game -- all he needs is control and composure. And not because Ankiel will make the Cards a contender -- that is happening without him.

Sure, it would be nice to have a lefty of Ankiel's talent under the Arch in September. But a relapse could sink the entire spirit of St. Louis. Think not of the addition, but the distraction.

Down in Johnson City, rumors of Rick's return swirl every day. The latest version has Ankiel throwing a few innings in San Diego at the beginning of September. Seems like a low-pressure way to come back, and the Cardinals are considering it. St. Louis general manager Walt Jocketty gave me a "maybe" when I asked him about a late-season comeback for Ankiel. He told me he's not sure the timing is right.

Jocketty is thinking the right way, but that "maybe" should be a "no way." Many athletes would have given up the game altogether after last year's humiliation. Ankiel had the courage to drop down to rookie ball and train harder than ever. It's working.

Let him revel in that success for more than a few weeks. Let him heal. One string of balls or wild pitches in a major league game could undo all the confidence-building Ankiel spent his summer on. Then what?

"If he gets rocked in the majors, he's gonna get psychologically hurt -- forever," says Greg Reeds, a sports psychologist at Canisius University who works with pro athletes. "How many times can you fail in front of the whole world and come back?"

No one knows what caused Ankiel to unravel. Was it his father's imprisonment? Was it his immaturity? Was it playoff pressure? Ankiel himself probably doesn't know why.

But if the Cards throw Ankiel to the wolves again next month, and if he falters again, this time blame won't be so hard to assign.

Eric Adelson is an associate editor at ESPN The Magazine. E-mail him at eric.adelson@espnmag.com.