HOUSTON — Mark Wohlers knows his is a compelling tale — establishing himself as a bullpen ace with the Atlanta Braves and sealing their 1995 world championship; suddenly losing his effectiveness and his pitching control as he endured an anxiety disorder; then suffering an elbow injury forced him to undergo “Tommy John” surgery. But he'd prefer to focus on the here and now.

        Wohlers, who hadn't pitched in the majors since April 1999 with Atlanta, made a successful return Thursday night by pitching a scoreless seventh and eighth innings in the Reds' 6-2 loss to the Astros.

        “I'm just trying to get back to where I want to be,” Wohlers said. “I really wasn't nervous. You go out and throw two scoreless innings and any pitcher will say that's where you want to be.

        “I felt good. As far as location of the fastball, it hasn't been an issue. I know if I have command of my fastball and good pitch selection, I can be successful anywhere.”

        Wohlers entered the game with the Reds trailing 6-2 in the seventh inning.

        “It was a perfect situation for him to get his feet on the ground,” manager Jack McKeon said. “He's so smooth that he fools you with that easy motion, and the ball gets on you so fast.”

        “People always wanted to talk about the past when it was (lousy),” Wohlers said Thursday, one day after returning to the major leagues as a Reds reliever. “I can understand that, because it would make a great story. But for a couple of years, I was the traveling sideshow in the circus, and it's ending. It's ending today.”

        Wohlers was referring to the wildness that derailed his Braves career, which in turn led to the trade that brought him to the Reds organization last year. But the elbow surgery July 6, 1999, forced him to delay his comeback until this year.

        “I've come a long way,” said Wohlers, who was 1-2 with a 5.70 ERA in 20 minor-league appearances before joining the Reds. “Although the majority of guys come back from Tommy John surgery, it wasn't an easy path. At times in November, I thought about hanging it up, just because the rehab and the obstacles I had to climb were getting old.”

        Meanwhile, Wohlers rediscovered life's other joys, such as his 3-year-old daughter, Nancy.

        “I'm not going to live and die with baseball like I did in the past,” Wohlers said. “I have a great deal of pride and integrity when I go be tween the white lines. Win, lose or draw, when it's all said and done, that's where it stays.”

        The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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