The Cardinals recalled reliever Guillermo Zuñiga before tonight’s matchup with the Angels. In a corresponding move, left-hander Zack Thompson was optioned to Triple-A Memphis. Thompson will stretch out as a starting pitcher in the minors, tweets Jeff Jones of the Belleville News Democrat.
Zuñiga, 24, is now in position to make his major league debut. The Colombian-born hurler signed with the Dodgers over the 2017-18 offseason. He spent five years in the Los Angeles organization, topping out at Double-A. When the Dodgers elected not to add him to the 40-man roster last winter, he qualified for minor league free agency. Zuñiga landed a 40-man spot from the Cardinals in November.
Last offseason, Baseball America named the 6’5″ hurler the #30 prospect in the St. Louis farm system. The outlet credits him with an upper-90s heater that touches triple digits and a plus breaking ball but raises questions about his control. Zuñiga has thrown strikes in a small sample of work with Memphis this year, only walking two of 35 batters faced. He’s punched out nine and allowed five runs in 8 2/3 innings. He’ll add a power arm to the MLB mix for skipper Oli Marmol and can bounce on and off the active roster for the extended future, as he’s only in the first of three minor league option seasons.
Thompson, the Cardinals’ first round pick in 2019, has worked exclusively in relief this year. The hard-throwing southpaw has tossed 11 2/3 innings over 11 outings. The Kentucky product has fanned 18 but walked nine and surrendered seven runs. Thompson had a stronger go last year as a rookie, working to a 2.08 ERA with a huge 53.7% ground-ball percentage in 34 2/3 frames over 22 outings (all but one in relief).
While he’s only made one start at the major league level, Thompson has functioned primarily as a starter in the minors. The Cards apparently don’t want to foreclose that option entirely. It’d appear primarily a move with an eye towards 2024. St. Louis has a starting staff of Jordan Montgomery, Steven Matz, Miles Mikolas, Jack Flaherty and Adam Wainwright for this season. Wainwright hasn’t pitched in the majors this season but will be reinstated from the injured list for his debut on Saturday, according to Lynn Worthy of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (Twitter link). Jake Woodford is on hand behind that group.
Montgomery and Flaherty are headed for free agency at the end of the season. Wainwright has already announced plans to retire. That leaves Mikolas and Matz as the only locks for the 2024 staff. The Cardinals will surely have to address the rotation — either at this summer’s deadline or next offseason — but they’d get a boost if an internal option like Matthew Liberatore or Thompson could earn a spot. The 25-year-old Thompson will head back to Memphis and build his innings count as he looks to do just that.
Wow. Wow! WOW!
Wow-WOW-how-HOW-how-WOW!
This… (Points index finger for emphasis), THIS is the move you’ve been waiting for!
Actually, I was waiting for the move of crooked bankster Stifel as the Birds’ uni patch sponsor yesterday.
At least it’s something. But it means they’ve more or less given up on Liberatore. Matz is currently doing his best Dakota Hudson impression. I really don’t think it’s on the players. When your entire roster suffers a serious downturn in performance, it’s on the coaches.
Too many nights going down without putting up a fight.
I think the problem(s) is a combination of almost everything, starting from the top, down. Mo & Co knew they didn’t do enough in the offseason. Marmol doesn’t seem like a guy who can rally his players when the going gets tough. The team always looks flat, just going through the motions, in my opinion.
You are 3 for 3.
The vibe just doesn’t feel right, at all, and it’s been that way most of the season, in my opinion. It’s like the whole team has a doom & gloom thunderstorm hanging over their heads.
At least the pitch clock has kept the losses from dragging on longer than they need to.
Yep, I really like addition of a pitch clock to the game.. that’s another change that was long overdue, in my opinion.
It’s because the players know the front office imposed coaching strategy is shi!t. They are feel cheated by an organization more intent on securing the legacy of John Mozeliak, than winning.
It’s even worse when the organization says it’s “all in” but then does so little to improve the team. As fans, we’re used to their bs and expect it most of the time, but as players, that has to be frustrating.
With all that said, the players should take their share of the blame for performing so badly, too. Just imagine how bad our record would be right now without Gorman’s red-hot start. The offense isn’t doing its job, either.
Thew worst part is to come, the same people who built this turd are going to be sellers at the deadline. I have no confidence they can manage that.
The Cards have to go 80-52 the rest of the way to finish with 90 wins. They have put themselves in a hole that may be too deep to climb out of, but it sure would be beautiful to see it happen. Chances may be slim, but we’ve seen magic around here before.
Lose 2 out of 3 for a month means they have to win 2 out of 3 for a month just get to the middle of a week division.
I can actually see them hanging on to most of their players (besides O’Neill) because they overvalue just about everything they have and probably won’t find trades they think are worth it.. is my guess
If Montgomery doesn’t sign an extension he will be traded. Flaherty has some value and will leave in free agency if not traded and with Winn at AAA one of Donovan or Edman will be available because they have Gorman.
That depends in part on how vocal the players are being about their unhappiness. Mo does not tolerate criticism. If anyone is openly pointing the finger at the front office, they are gone.
Yeah, I wasn’t thinking clearly, I forgot about them being in a position where they basically have to unload some players to make room for Winn and Walker, plus the rotation is still a mess, too.
Mo doesn’t tolerate criticism because he’s a snowflake, so he can’t handle any heat, even when he’s clearly part of the problem. He loves taking credit when things go right, though.
DonOsbourne;
I knew before the 2022 season (wrote here dozens of times) that the White Sox were already headed down while people were calling them WS contenders. This year everyone sees it.
I felt similar about the Cardinals heading down going into this season but thought it would take a while. Am a bit puzzled about the timing.
The Mike Shilt firing was the handwriting on the wall. He was winning in spite of the FO. He understands baseball – how to work with the players and coaches along with how to run a game – and especially Cardinals baseball.
No FO brings in a rookie manager to handle a supposedly contending team of primarily veterans that respected the manager that got fired.
P.S. Mike Maddux seems to be doing a very nice job with the Rangers pitchers, no?
P.S.S. I’ve never been impressed with Mo, and for all the complaining about Yadi last year…..boy, is he ever missed. Then again, Willson Contreras has a higher BA, OBP, and OPS so Mo and the fellas got that covered.
Thank you, someone else who see through the curtain… Mike Maddux and Skip Sch leaving the same offseaon? Left a bad stench? Smells really fishy….
Skip goes to manage sandy and Mike was like that dude you sold like a slave to the Rangers in 2019 is hitting 30 homeruns?
Laughing stock…
Plus Jeff Albert and Matt Holliday.
They’d have to sweep all their Tues/Weds/Thurs games to win the middle of the week division.
But Stifel!
And, Mo is fine with a “flat” Marmol not making noise vs a roster-challenging Shildt.
Liberatore, contra some BFID, will surely always remain a prospect.
This is Oviedos replacement?
Idk about stretching Thompson to a starter, but they gotta get oneof Libratore, Thompson to contribute this year cause the turn over this offseason might be massive? They gotta figure who’s who now, especially if this season might be lost
If someone shows dissent and they are a bit player, yes they can be marginalized and shipped out. If the team leaders, so-called, such as Goldy, Arenado, and Wainwright speak to the brass and share their displeasure it would be not impossible but exceptionally difficult to marginalize them or ship them out. The leaders need to step up and say this isn’t right.
The players do need to perform, but they also need to think for themselves. If a company line about how to pitch or how to hit isn’t working, the team cannot force a player to do a certain thing. This isn’t a team sport in the sense of plays being called and everyone needing to do the same thing for any results to occur.
The players are not playing to their fullest, but the coaching clearly is not working and the first change needs to start there.
Glad to see Thompson getting another shot at starting after his impressive showing during the second half last year. But right now the last thing the pen needs is a guy you aren’t sure can throw strikes. I’d have rather seen the mediocre serviceable James Naile brought up to put up 3 innings on nights Matz can’t escape the 3rd and Hicks has already been worn out from giving up 4 runs previous night
Don’t forget that Zuñiga was filthy in World Baseball Classic.
Looked nasty tonight.
Call up Liberatore. He can’t be any worse than Matz. I tried to give him as much of a chance as I could. Matz is likely still having shoulder issues. That rarely gets better.
Bottom line. The Cardinals cannot help, train, or develop pitching. They need to seriously look at what coaches they have in place relative to pitching and replace them. However it was this front office that put them in place so what can we expect.
Champs64;
Mike Maddox isn’t having a problem in Dallas.
Why did Mike Maddux leave again?
Skip Schumacker too? He was a former Cardinal? Went to go manage a former Cardinal who was the cy young winner last year? Lol
Everyone was so high on the Cardinals? Seems they all should have bet low on the coaches?
Matz and Contereas deal are looking like Brett Cecil and Dexter Fowler 2.0…
All that has matter for so long was Mr Bill DeWitt Jr money… well look at it now?
How are those cash considerations you got for Adolis Garcia now Mr DeWitt?
Thing that bothers me the most is they traded the two best looking players from the Outfield minors system in 2019 and they have both been lighting it up and the club has gotten nothing in return? Almost like John Mozeliak said if Jeff Luhnow is right about these two Cubans with his model… better trade then now
Cardinals need to fire Marmol tonight. Should have never been hired
Even Kerwin Danley knows he’s not cut out for it
I would have never hired him, but he’d be gone after tonight’s game if I was in charge
Yep, from the outside looking in, Marmol needs to go. Too much talent on that team. When he called out O’Neil in the press, you could hear the wind spilling from the sails. They won’t play hard for him.
And that’s how the players collude and throw a manager who’s crap under the bus in front of the whole world, I hope John Mozeliak gets fired to and they rehire Jeff Luhnow
Calling Tyler O’Neill out in public was a BS move. Rather than privately telling Pop Warner he’d screwed up, he publicly blasts a hustling hard-nosed player.
I don’t know if there’s any coming back from that.
He wasn’t hustling on that particular play, but there was also a better approach to addressing the situation than the option Marmol chose.
Cards need a bloop and a bloop and a bloop and a blast. To tie.
Or a bloop and a bloop and a bloop and a bloop and a blast. To win.
Oy vey! Forget it.
Thompson started the season with 6-7 good outings. He’s just had a tough road trip over 3 games.
The birds need to be working on extending Montgomery now.
Yeah, but that’s not going to happen. Monty wants to test the market – and I don’t blame him.
Not even worth my time to comment on a last place, 10-20 team.
And yet, here you are commenting. Such a sad, little man.
That didn’t count as an official comment and neither does this.
I think the Murphy trade that would have cost a haul was a mistake. It would have cost a couple starter level outfielders and Donovan, but Murphy can hit and call a game and will catch more games than our offensively minded Yadi replacement. The team bragged about the depth and the competition in the outfield, but I feel would have been better off overall with 3 consistent starters and a 4th on the bench than hanging onto all of them. I like all of the outfielders and Donovan, but not giving anyone a shot to work themselves out of a slump costs the team games in the long run when they get in a groove. I don’t see them pulling out of this funk this season. The money Contraras got could have been used to extend Murphy like the smart baseball ops department did in Atlanta.