San Diego star Jake Peavy said the fear of needing Tommy John surgery on a ligament led him to being completely honest with the trainers about the soreness in his arm. He's been placed on the injured list. (Associated Press)

Reigning National League Cy Young Award winner Jake Peavy will go on the 15-day disabled list with swelling and a strained muscle in his pitching elbow, the team has announced.

An MRI exam showed the San Diego righthander has no ligament damage.

While disappointed in being shut down for at least two weeks, the Padres ace said he was relieved there's no structural damage.

"When you do get discomfort in your elbow and it's near the Tommy John ligament, you know what Tommy John means, and yeah there's cause for concern," Peavy said.

He was referring to Tommy John surgery, or reconstructive surgery when a pitcher damages his ulnar collateral ligament.

"So I was upfront and honest with the trainers when it happened and we've monitored it and done all we can do with drugs to get me to where maybe we thought it would go away and it hasn't," Peavy said.

"I knew something was in there. I understand when something's not right," he said. "You just hope the right thing was wrong with you and fortunately we think that's the case."

Has hurt for a while

Peavy said he felt discomfort for his last three or four starts.

Not only was his elbow sore on every pitch, but he said it also began bothering him in everyday life, even when he'd turn a door knob or squeeze his bottle of contact lens solution.

"That's when you go, 'Man, something's wrong,' " Peavy said.

Peavy throws a hard slider, but said the injury went beyond his signature pitch.

"This was just every pitch I threw, I could feel it," Peavy said.

Fearing the worst

Peavy was scratched on Sunday from his scheduled start Monday night against the St. Louis Cardinals. The Padres lost, 8-2.

"You always fear the worst," manager Bud Black said Monday night. "In this case it wasn't, so that's a good thing.

"The doctors were confident Jake will be fine. He's feeling better already."

Peavy (4-3, 2.91 ERA), has lost three of his last four decisions.

He was the unanimous winner of last year's NL Cy Young Award after leading the league in wins, ERA and strikeouts, pitching's version of a Triple Crown.