"Standing in the visitors' dugout in St. Louis after his last start more than a month ago, Roy Oswalt sounded like a broken man, wondering aloud whether he'd thrown his last pitch as a big leaguer.

He's come a long way in the weeks since -- his back feeling good once more, and his right arm again capable of delivering a pitch without pain.

So while Sunday's return to the mound was hardly an overwhelmingly strong performance for Oswalt, it's one that offered an immense dose of encouragement.

"Probably better than I thought I was going to be," Oswalt said. "I gave up a few more hits than I wanted to. But it wasn't like I was giving up doubles in the gap."

Oswalt allowed 12 hits over six innings, tying a career high, but only two hits went for extra bases and only three runners crossed the plate.

Oswalt touched 93 on the radar gun, with his average fastball clocking in at about 91.4 mph. That's up a tick from May and June, when the pain in his back dramatically limited him on the mound.

And while the Giants put plenty of balls in play, Oswalt showed he'd gotten some life back on his fastball, too.

The Giants swung and missed at nine of the 57 fastballs and sinkers Oswalt threw -- about three times the rate of swings-and-misses Oswalt was getting on the pitch before being placed on the disabled list at the end of June.

"I feel better," Oswalt said. "Mechanics feel better. The other pitches feel a lot better. It's nice when you don't have to worry about trying to make it through a couple of innings.""