Winn (knee) out of lineup for opener vs. Bucs, could return Wednesday

ST. LOUIS -- After leaving Sunday’s game vs. the Royals in the seventh inning due to discomfort in his left knee, Masyn Winn remained out of the Cardinals' starting lineup on Tuesday night for St. Louis' series opener vs. division-rival Pittsburgh at Busch Stadium.

Following hopes that a dose of rest on the team’s day off Monday would alleviate the ailment, Winn returned to the ballpark on Tuesday still feeling the effects.

As a result, Winn underwent an MRI before Tuesday’s game, which came back clean, manager Oliver Marmol said on the Cardinals' television broadcast. Marmol added that the team is hopeful Winn can return to the lineup Wednesday, but is considered day to day.

“He was slightly better, but still sore,” Marmol said. “So we wanted to make sure if we’re going to test it out, let’s get some imaging first and then we’ll start testing it out.”

Marmol described that, before taking steps to push Winn back toward game action, the team wanted to get eyes on anything he might be dealing with in the left knee area -- so, the MRI.

“Based on how he communicated right after the game, he wasn’t very concerned when I talked to him,” Marmol said. “He still didn’t seem very concerned. But we just want to make sure that it’s fine if we want us to go day to day and as tolerated, but that we’re not pushing through anything structural.”

Though it’s not the same knee that caused Winn’s Gold Glove-winning 2025 campaign to be cut short due to a late-season procedure, the Cardinals will certainly be keeping close tabs on his status -- particularly given how central he's been to the team's success on both sides of the ball.