Injuries & Moves: Matz (back) to undergo MRI
LATEST NEWS
May 1: LHP Steven Matz (lower back soreness) to undergo imaging
Matz will undergo an MRI on Thursday in hopes that it'll reveal what's been ailing the 32-year-old for the past week. Manager Oliver Marmol revealed following Tuesday’s doubleheader that Matz has dealt with soreness that began after his April 23 start. Matz said he was confident he could make Tuesday’s Game 2 start and did so, but he "didn't look right," per Marmol. Matz struggled to finish off batters as his back worsened as the outing went on, and his velocity dipped between 3-6 mph below his norm. He departed after just 3 1/3 frames.
May 1: CF Dylan Carlson (sprained left AC joint) begins rehab at Triple-A Memphis
Carlson went 0-for-1 with a pair of walks as the designated hitter for Memphis on Tuesday, the first game of his rehab assignment. He'll continue to get reps at the plate and eventually the field as he gears up to rejoin the Cards. St. Louis has been missing its projected Opening Day center fielder since March 25, when he collided with right fielder Jordan Walker and fell hard onto his left shoulder. An MRI that night revealed a sprain to the AC joint in the shoulder. The club's No. 3 prospect, Victor Scott II, initially filled Carlson's role in center field, but the 23-year-old struggled to get going at the plate, going 5-for-59 in 20 games for an .085 batting average before he was optioned to Memphis on April 21.
April 30: RHP Kyle Leahy recalled from Triple-A Memphis as 27th man; returned following DH
Leahy, who made his MLB debut July 7, showed enough with the Redbirds this season that the Cardinals wanted to give him a look. The 26-year-old has a .075 walk rate in eight appearances (12 1/3 innings) this season with Memphis, where he's drawn 30 whiffs. "He's done a really nice job," Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said Monday. "This gives us an opportunity to potentially lay eyes on him ourselves and go from there." Leahy took the loss Tuesday after allowing two runs on two hits during his 1 1/3 innings of relief.
April 30: LHP Drew Rom (left shoulder biceps tendinitis) transferred to 60-day IL
Rom, who initially was projected to return in April, was scheduled to see a doctor on Tuesday in hopes of understanding why his arm isn’t recovering the way he or the team had hoped. While they await results, the Cardinals shifted Rom to the 60-day injured list.
10-DAY/15-DAY INJURED LIST
CF Dylan Carlson (sprained left AC joint)
Expected return: Early May
Carlson went 0-for-1 with a pair of walks as the designated hitter on April 30, the first game of his rehab assignment with Triple-A Memphis.
Carlson, who was slated to be the Opening Day center fielder following a strong Spring Training, has been out since he collided with right fielder Jordan Walker on March 25 and fell hard onto his left shoulder. An MRI that night revealed a sprain to the AC joint in the shoulder. (Last updated: May 1)
DH/1B Matt Carpenter (right oblique strain)
Expected return: Early May
Manager Oliver Marmol said Carpenter was "feeling really good" after taking live batting practice on April 29. Carpenter will repeat the activity on April 30, and then Marmol said the club will "start to figure out" what a rehab assignment will look like for the 38-year-old.
Carpenter was placed on the 10-day injured list on April 2. (Last updated: April 29)
RHP Keynan Middleton (right forearm strain)
Expected return: Early May
Middleton is scheduled to throw off the mound on April 29, not quite a simulation because his catcher will be standing. The activity, which manager Oliver Marmol called "mound catch" is simply to help Middleton readjust to the feel of throwing off the mound after working off of flat ground for so long.
The next step for Middleton, who last pitched March 7, will be a bullpen session. (Last updated: April 29)
CF Tommy Edman (right wrist surgery)
Expected return: Late May
The switch-hitting Edman, who has yet to fully go through baseball activities after undergoing wrist surgery in October, has progressed to taking swings from both sides of a tee and has reported no issues. Because of previous pain and swelling, Edman had been limited to swinging from the left side.
Edman, who signed a two-year, $16 million contract extension in January to avoid salary arbitration proceedings, was shut down four times in Spring Training because of lingering pain and swelling in his wrist. Edman said he got second and third opinions from independent doctors during Spring Training, and he was assured that the wrist is structurally sound.
"This time around," manager Oliver Marmol said April 29, "he's been good and recovering really well." (Last updated: April 29)
RHP Riley O'Brien (right forearm strain)
Expected return: May
O’Brien underwent an MRI on his strained right forearm that revealed no structural damage, Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said on April 1. “We’re in a good spot and [the injury] is what we thought,” Marmol said. “Nothing alarming and we’re glad that we shut it down when we did.”
O’Brien, 29, allowed one run in one inning against the Dodgers on March 28, but he reported tightness in his forearm to the team the next day while playing catch and was placed on the 15-day injured list on March 31. (Last updated: April 1)
60-DAY INJURED LIST
LHP Drew Rom (left shoulder biceps tendinitis)
Expected return: TBD
Rom was scheduled to see a doctor on April 30, and he was moved to the 60-day IL earlier the same day.
“He just wasn’t making a whole lot of progress, so they wanted to take another look at it,” manager Oliver Marmol said.
Rom, who made his MLB debut with the Cardinals last season after coming over in a trade with the Orioles, was placed on the 15-day injured list retroactive to March 25. The lefty injured his pitching arm during Spring Training. (Last updated: April 30)