ST. LOUIS -- The Cardinals did not play with several key members of their roster at different points over the course of the regular season. But now, they have health -- and decisions to make.

The nature of the one-game Wild Card makes it so the Cards can tackle such roster decisions more aggressively than perhaps in a best-of-five National League Division Series. Logic would suggest they’d carry a few additional position players, such as a third catcher, and some additional bench pieces. But who would those players be, and how might the back end of the pitching staff shake out?

Such discussions have already been well under way and will be finalized as the Cardinals trek to Los Angeles to keep their season going. By the time that comes, these four roster questions will need to be answered:

1. How to square up the pitching?
With Adam Wainwright slated to start the NL Wild Card Game on Wednesday, the Cardinals can afford to avoid roster redundancies -- i.e., multiple starters -- for a single game in order to inject some flexibility into their bullpen.

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That likely means some combination of J.A. Happ, Miles Mikolas and Jon Lester will be casualties of the Wild Card roster squeeze, though they'd be added back for a possible NLDS. (Same for Jake Woodford, who might be a fringe NLDS roster candidate as well.) Lester is the clear candidate to sit, since he would be on short rest, but do the Cards prefer the right-handed length of Mikolas or the left-handed look of Happ?

The circumstances are much more auspicious for someone like Dakota Hudson, who would be on regular rest for Wednesday after throwing five shutout innings on Friday in his second outing since his return from Tommy John surgery a year ago. He would be the most logical piggyback candidate to follow Wainwright, should the Cardinals employ such a tactic.

2. How does Jack Flaherty fit in?
Flaherty will be on the Wild Card roster, manager Mike Shildt said, and he may benefit the most from the one-game scenario, given the uncertainty of his workload. The right-hander -- coming off a left oblique tear in May and a right shoulder strain in August -- has yet to officially pitch on back-to-back days, though he effectively did so on Sunday, a day removed from warming up in the bullpen for a potential appearance in a 10th inning that never came.

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That was the first real-world test of Flaherty’s availability for an October workload. He’s been kept from working back as a starter without much runway on the calendar to do so, but this is the first time he’s routinely come out of the bullpen in his career. Health now and health for 2022 will be at the forefront of his outlook, the front office has said.

“We’re in a balancing act,” Shildt admitted last week. “… We’re going to give him the opportunity to go out and compete, but we also recognize that we’re about to head into a postseason, and it’s a time to put the guys out there that can help us the most. Jack is clearly a guy that can help us, but we've got to make sure we are carrying a group that doesn’t have limitations in that setting.”

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Flaherty looked his best yet on Sunday, and his mere presence is a threat, especially if he were to come out of the bullpen with the season on the line, pitching in his hometown of Los Angeles, to boot. The Cardinals will be fortunate if they have to answer that question of back-to-back days in the NLDS.

3. Who’s at short?
Edmundo Sosa was nursing a right wrist injury down the stretch, appearing in just the final three games (two starts) of the regular season; one of those starts came at second base. He was the surefire starter in the season’s final two months before his injury flared up, and that gave Paul DeJong some consistent at-bats.

History has suggested that the Cardinals prefer the skill set of Sosa, a spark plug on both sides of the ball who hits for a better average than DeJong. But the latter has a mildly successful history against Dodgers ace Max Scherzer, is fourth on the team in homers and is more of a proven, steady entity in the field, perhaps making him better suited for a one-game sample. The Cards could then flip back to Sosa for a potential NLDS.

"It will be a challenge, absolutely,” Shildt said. “… It’s a good decision to have. We’ve got two good players, and we’ll make a decision we think is best for that particular moment.”

4. Any surprise nods?
Like many teams, the Cardinals are expected to go position-heavy in the Wild Card Game, opening up more opportunities for pinch-hits and double-switches. Catcher Ali Sánchez has been with the big league club over the past week and figures to serve as a third catcher.

But behind him, might the Cardinals call upon someone like outfielder Justin Williams -- who was on their Opening Day roster and raking as of late at Triple-A Memphis -- as a left-handed bat on the bench who can also pinch-run? Or might Juan Yepez -- recently crowned by MLB Pipeline as the Cardinals’ position-player prospect of the year -- get a surprise chance on the bench? It would go a bit against St. Louis' operating tendencies, but it’s an option it has up its sleeve nonetheless.