BRADENTON, Fla. -- There was a time when catcher J.R. House was the jewel of the Pirates' system.

Now, at age 25, he could be facing his fourth major surgery in four years and another significant delay to his career.

House learned yesterday from the Pirates' medical staff that he has a dual injury in his right shoulder, a torn labrum and a 30 percent tear of the rotator cuff. He will be examined tomorrow by Dr. James Andrews in Birmingham, Ala. If Andrews determines surgery is necessary, it will happen Tuesday.

If he has surgery, he likely would miss most or all of the coming season.

"I'm not optimistic it can be avoided," House said. "It's frustrating, but it's out of my hands now."

House hits and throws right-handed, increasing the potential impact of the injury on his career, although position players generally recover more quickly from shoulder surgeries than pitchers.

Team officials did not discuss the injury in detail, but they did express hope that House would rebound again.

"I understand how tough those things are, particularly when they set you back in your progress," manager Lloyd McClendon said. "Hopefully, he can be back out here soon."

House's injury was detected when pitchers and catchers had physicals Friday morning. A magnetic resonance imaging scan revealed the tears, and the news was relayed to House yesterday morning. Unlike the previous day, he did not dress with his teammates, instead preparing for the flight to Alabama tomorrow.

Although House described the injury as chronic, he pinpointed the start of the current trouble to his ninth game in the Dominican Republic's winter league two months ago. He played two additional games there, then returned home to Charleston, W.Va.

"I tried to rehab it on my own, which is something I've done with this shoulder for years," he said. "I figured I had 6-8 weeks before I needed it to be ready for spring training, and it might take care of itself. I kept trying to throw at home and ... it didn't work out."

General manager Dave Littlefield said the Pirates were aware of House's chronic shoulder pain for an extended period of time.

"As it is with a lot of players, you try to manage situations as best you can," Littlefield said. "It's come to the point where it's bothering him enough that we, along with he, feel like he's got some problems."

House, the Pirates' fifth-round pick in the 1999 amateur draft, was regarded so highly that he caused a public stir in Pittsburgh two years later when he wavered between sticking with baseball or honoring a commitment to play quarterback at West Virginia University.

He chose baseball but has never stayed healthy for long, having each of his past five seasons interrupted by injury or illness. That includes three surgeries in 2002, one to repair an abdominal muscle, another for a hernia, another to reconstruct his right elbow.

House played 99 games last season for Class AAA Nashville and hit .288 with 21 doubles, 15 home runs and 49 RBIs. He also had two stints with the Pirates, his first sustained action in the majors, but played sparingly and went 1 for 9.

House, who two years ago became a born-again Christian, said he is leaning heavily on his faith while waiting to learn of his fate.

"When I've had surgeries in the past, I didn't know the Lord, so I didn't know how to handle it," he said. "I have such a different, more positive attitude now. Hopefully, God blesses Dr. Andrews and all goes well."