MILWAUKEE -- Brewers right-hander Yovani Gallardo has crutches stashed in his locker, a vertical scar on his swollen right knee and a more cautious outlook on his odds of pitching again this season.

"I don't want to say yes, and then I'm not able to," Gallardo said Friday at Miller Park. "I don't want to be disappointed."

That's a slight change in tone for the 22-year-old, who tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee after tangling with a Cubs baserunner near first base at Wrigley Field on May 1. He remained in that game for another 1 2/3 innings, but the extent of the injury became clear after an MRI scan the following morning.

He underwent surgery to repair the torn ACL on May 8 in Milwaukee. The Brewers have not put a timetable on Gallardo's return, but assistant general manager Gord Ash said the team is operating under the assumption that he will not pitch again this season.

Immediately after his surgery, Gallardo was vocal about wanting to pitch again, maybe in late September or even in October should the Brewers make the playoffs. Now he is more concerned with his rehabilitation, which at this point includes range of motion exercises and weight work intended to reduce the swelling in his knee.

"That's the first thing," he said. "We have to get all the swelling out of there; that's the most important thing. Then you have to get your muscles to work again."

So far, there have been no setbacks.

"It's tough, but it gets a little better every day," said Gallardo, who no longer needs to rely on his wife to drive him to and from the ballpark. "Everything is on track."