ST. LOUIS -- The only Dodger Stadium mound that Johnny Cueto will climb this weekend is the one in the visitor’s bullpen, as the right-hander’s return from Tommy John surgery won’t come until after the club’s road trip.

Instead of pitching in the Giants' upcoming series against the Dodgers, Cueto is slated to throw another side session in Los Angeles. It’s not so much a test for his rehabbed right elbow, but rather one for his back, which bothered him during a bullpen session at Busch Stadium on Tuesday.

“He had just a little bump,” manager Bruce Bochy said. “Under normal circumstances, we might try to pitch through it. But with him coming off major surgery and a tough rehab, we’re going to take our time. We’re going to make sure that he’s ready.”

Cueto acknowledged also feeling the discomfort on the upper left side of his back during a six-inning rehab start for Triple-A Sacramento last Saturday. It returned when he warmed up for Tuesday’s side work, though he estimated he still threw about 30 pitches before deciding to quit. 

“After a while, I thought I should stop and avoid hurting something else,” Cueto said. “It’s frustrating, but I understand and just have to wait and hope that it goes away. I’ll just go day by day, and I’ll do whatever I need to do. I just have to be smart and realize that I have two more years with the Giants, so I will do what they tell me to do.”

Cueto described his back as feeling “better” a day later. 

“It doesn’t matter how much working out you’ve been doing or how much you’ve been playing,” Bochy said. “When you get into game speed or the workload gets closer to a normal game, you’re going to feel it a little bit. And that’s probably the case. It’s not uncommon to have some aches and pains.”

Still, the setback comes on the heels of what had been an encouraging string of rehab appearances for Cueto. The right-hander, who hasn’t pitched in the Majors in over 13 months, still hopes to be able to make a handful of starts for the Giants before the regular-season calendar runs out.  

Until Cueto is cleared for competition, the Giants will move forward with their current five-man rotation. That means that Jeff Samardzija, Tyler Beede and Dereck Rodriguez will draw starts during the team’s upcoming visit to Los Angeles.