While St. Louis Cardinals approaching the midway point of spring training, they feel confident about most of their roster.
Despite the Cardinals’ slow offensive start (no home runs through their first nine exhibition games), president of baseball operations John Mozeliak and manager Ollie Marmol have a few questions for their team. The starting lineup is more or less known, as is the rotation and the back end of the bullpen. But there are a handful of players missing from Grapefruit League games, leaving some concerns about their status.
For some players, like Lance Lynn and Steven Matz, a slow start to the spring was the plan all along. Tommy Edman’s case is a bit more worrisome as he continues to recover from offseason surgery. And of course, newcomer Brandon Crawford will be looking to make his Cardinal debut fairly soon.
Let’s check the status of the Cardinals players who have yet to play in a spring game.
TO Tommy Edman
Edman continues to make progress following arthroscopic surgery he underwent in October to address right wrist pain that plagued him for most of the 2023 season, but internal concern is growing that Edman will not be ready for opening day. Edman has yet to be cleared to face a live scrimmage, although he has been active in certain backfield drills. The current priority for key-hitting Edman is to even out his swing, as his left side is ahead of his right. There is also the issue of ensuring sufficient recovery between work days.
But a glance at the calendar will tell you that the Cardinals are running out of steam if they want their starting center fielder to be released for Opening Day. The Cardinals have about three weeks of exhibition games remaining, and the team would prefer Edman see game action before clearing him for regular-season play. There is no timetable for Edman to take live swings, let alone be cleared for Grapefruit League play. If Edman is unable to suit up for the regular season opener — March 28 against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium — all signs point to Dylan Carlson taking over in center field, as the team prefers Lars Nuthbaar to remain in left field.
Edman will be the team’s primary center fielder when he is declared healthy and will no longer be responsible for backing up rookie Masin Winn at shortstop. With the one-year, $2 million signing of Brandon Crawford (more on him later) last week, Edman will stick to the outfield.
If Edman starts the year on the injured list, his active roster spot will leave room for one of Alec Burleson, Jose Fermin or Michael Ciani as the final backup (assuming Crawford, Matt Carpenter and backup catcher Ivan Herrera are already benched ). Given the lack of center field options behind Karlsson, Ciani is the leading candidate to round out the roster.
The Cardinals are extremely cautious about Steven Matz’s return due to his recent injury history. (Ed Zurga/Getty Images)
LHF Steven Matz
Matz is one of two starting pitchers who have yet to pitch in a Grapefruit League game, but that will end this week. Matz was originally scheduled to move Myles Mikolas and pitch two innings against the Minnesota Twins on Tuesday, but Sunday’s rain forced the Cardinals to change some plans. Instead, Matz will make his spring debut Monday, tossing an inning behind Opening Day starter Sonny Gray.
The Cardinals were strategic with the way they stepped up Matz in February and formulated a plan that the 32-year-old was on board with. Given Matz’s extensive injury history in his first two years with St. Louis, the team felt it was best to slow down on Matz’s spring development. A shoulder injury followed by a torn MCL led to Matz making just 15 starts in 2022, and a lat strain ended his year in 2023, shortly after he reinvented himself after a demotion in the bullpen. Before the stretch ended, Matz had posted a 1.86 ERA in seven starts, his best stretch since signing a four-year, $44 million deal before the 2022 season. The Cardinals hope Matz can return to that form this year and believe the estimated spring load gives it the best chance to do so.
RHP Lance Lynn
Unlike Matz, Lin’s slow development this spring was more a matter of personal preference than professional strategy. Lynn has expressed a desire to increase the backfield during the first week of spring games, a practice common throughout baseball. The Cardinals used this method with Jack Flaherty and Jordan Montgomery last year, for example.
Lin threw three simulated innings in the backfield on Saturday, preparing him to make his Grapefruit League debut on Friday against the Washington Nationals. He is not considered “behind” Gray, Mikolas or Kyle Gibson because he is on the same pitching schedule. The only difference is that his work took place outside of gaming. He will resume his regular spot in the rotation after Friday’s outing. Matthew Liberatore and Zach Thompson are also expected to continue to start games as the Cardinals continue to consider whether to open the season with a temporary six-man rotation or have a swingman option in their bullpen. Both Liberatore and Thompson are the leading contenders for both scenarios.
SS Brandon Crawford
Mozeliak pegged mid-March as the earliest game Crawford would see action, but the Cardinals remain tight-lipped on when their newest signing might debut. St. Louis decided to sign Crawford, a three-time All-Star and four-time Gold Glove winner during his 13 seasons with the San Francisco Giants, to back up Wynn at shortstop. Although the organization didn’t determine the need for it until early in camp, the club decided that adding a veteran backup behind Winn would ease the pressure on the 21-year-old rookie and shore up depth at the position.
Crawford, who has been open about how his decorated career in San Francisco ended, has been in camp for a week. He has been involved daily in field work and batting practice. Because he was a late addition, he will need plenty of time to work his way into game-ready status, but both Crawford and the Cardinals aren’t concerned about how the late start will affect his readiness come game day. the discovery.
(Tommy Edman top photo: Jeff Roberson/Associated Press)
