The Cardinals announced a set of roster moves, headlined by Adam Wainwright’s activation from the 15-day injured list. St. Louis also selected the contract of left-hander Andrew Suarez, moved Ryan Helsley to the 60-day injured list, and optioned catcher Ivan Herrera and left-hander Zack Thompson to Triple-A.
Wainwright will take the ball to start tonight’s game against the Diamondbacks, as the veteran will try to get his 18th and final Major League season on track. He last pitched on July 4, as shoulder inflammation and (as implied by Cardinals manager Olli Marmol) a broader range of nagging injuries sent Wainwright to the IL for the second time this season. He also started the year on the IL due to a groin injury that delayed his 2023 debut until May 6.
It seems clear that Wainwright simply hasn’t been himself all year, as the 41-year-old has been hit hard to the tune of a 7.66 ERA over 11 starts and 51 2/3 innings. His injuries are quite possibly to blame, or it could be that time has simply caught up to a pitcher who has defied convention by remaining an effective starter into his 40’s. In the best-case scenario, this latest absence will act as a reset for Wainwright and allow him to finish his career on high note, albeit amidst a very disappointing Cardinals season.
Suarez signed a minor league deal with St. Louis during the offseason, and now looks set to make his first MLB appearance since 2020. Breaking into the bigs with three seasons pitching for the Giants, Suarez posted a 4.66 ERA over 202 2/3 innings with San Francisco before heading overseas. Suarez pitched well for the KBO League’s LG Twins in 2021, but a move from South Korea to Japan didn’t pan out — he had a 6.23 ERA over 21 2/3 innings with the Tokyo Yakult Swallows of Nippon Professional Baseball in 2022, pitching most of the year with the Swallows’ top minor league affiliate.
The move back to North America has served Suarez reasonably well, as he has a 4.08 ERA, 24.5% strikeout rate, and 8.9% walk rate in 64 innings with Triple-A Memphis. Working mostly as a multi-inning reliever, Suarez has been stretched out as a starter in his last three outings, and could be paired with Wainwright in a piggyback combo while Wainwright gets fully ramped up. Since several Cardinals starters are trade candidates heading into the deadline, Suarez might get an opportunity should one or more holes in the rotation open up.
Helsley’s 15-day IL stint began on June 10, and he was expected to miss at least a few more weeks anyway since he only recently started throwing bullpen sessions. The reliever is recovering from a forearm strain, and told MLB.com and other reporters that he was taking a more cautious approach to his recovery after trying “to rush back too quick” from a similar injury in 2018.
I thought he was supposed to be out for a while.
He was buddy plus all star break it wasn’t a major issues
Herrera made good of his 8 games… trade Contreras… bone head signing…
When was the last time a guy signed a free agent deal of 5 years or longer and was traded mid-season that same year?
You tell me
He’s got a promotional giveaway coming up in early August too so he isn’t going anywhere.
The plan is essentially to non-tender Knizner this offseason, then Herrera will be the backup starting next year and take more and more of the playing time behind the plate as Contreras gets older and needs more and more time at DH. By Year 5 of Contreras’s contract if not sooner, Herrera will be the undisputed starting catcher.
Dude Herrera might be traded this week. If he’s a backup here in St Louis but another team would use him as a starter then there is a good chance he gets traded. This is why trades happen.
Possibly, but I doubt it. It’s not like Herrera himself can force a trade if he wants to be a starter more quickly than he will/would be in St. Louis.
In the event that Herrera is traded, then the plan obviously changes and makes Contreras even more indispensable..
Contreras was signed to a 5 year contract. Regardless of what you or me think he’s going to play and going to play a lot.
Herrera isnt that good of a defender anyways. He reminds me of a young Contreras he really does.
Certainly, Contreras will play a lot over the course of his contract (barring major injuries). The question is just how much of that playing time will come at catcher vs. DH as both he and his contract ages.
If I was smarter about computers and stuff I would find a moving picture, I think its called a gif, and it would show a sinking ship and a little white flag being raised.
But I am not. So you will just have to use your imaginations.
It’s pronounced gif.
Is that not what I said?
Classic Cardinals fan, either not understanding a joke or not clever enough to provide a decent retort.
No need to be RUDE! Shouted a Cardinals fan with Retort
English is so awesome….have you finished those deserts? It’s getting hot here in the desert….
White flag…. Oh like the Titan?
When you hang on too long, it will almost always end badly.
Wainwright was pretty good as early as last season. The season just cratered for him this year, age finally caught up with him. I’m not a Cardinals fan, but I’d really like him to get his 200th win.
I think it is about age but I also think a big part of it is he’s not throwing to Molina…just like entire pitching staff and I believe it is a big part of why the season is the way it is
Contreras was never going to become Yadi, but the Cardinals did jerk him around early on in the season too. That probably didn’t help his confidence behind the plate. It just shows how incredibly important Yadi was to not only the pitching staff, but to that Cardinals clubhouse too.
Might be the last time we will ever see 200…
Gerrit Cole is going to get at least 200 wins. He’s been durable and is still relatively young.
The tough part with Waino is he looked finished 5 years ago. But he bounced back and had some of his best seasons the last few years. But yes clearly this has been 1 year too long.
At this point I want the highest draft pick possible. So in that way I am sure he’s gonna do what’s best for the team today. True team player always has been.
The draft pick isn’t really much of an incentive now that they’ve moved to a semi-lottery with the highest picks. I’d at least like the Cardinals to avoid finishing in last place for just the second time since 1917.
Lottery means we could actually get the number 1 pick
I know Waino will do what’s best for the team.
“The tough part with Waino”…Waino has always been a team guy, a real class act in my honest opinion.
Yeah I am half joking. He really is a great guy.
Would anyone be surprised if the Cards go on a bonkers winning spree and end up in the playoffs? I wouldn’t.
With their talent, they could easily get 44 of their last 62 and end up with a wild card. Someone always finishes white hot and my bet is it’ll be the Cards.
Why can’t Waino have a Pujols type story book ending and be a part of it?
I wouldn’t be shocked but man every time the team starts to look good they choke. This team is a mess and it’s time to sell. I don’t like it but it’s time to sell.
The whole Jordan Walker situation is really what screwed this team up. You won’t hear many Cardinal fans say that but it’s true.
@Ejemp2006 I’m guessing you didn’t see their last 3 games against the Cubs.
@InherentVice “Success is how high you bounce after hitting rock bottom.” Patton
whats the whole jordan walker situation?
He’s terrible on defense. He’s like one of those NBA players that can score but can’t play defense and gives it all away on the other end. Like Trae Young.
He’s epicly bad in the outfield.
Sure, but Walker’s bat more than makes up for his terrible defense, and if he doesn’t improve enough in the OF, they can always make him the primary DH in the future.
Meanwhile, the offense and for the most part the defense aren’t what’s wrong with the team. Walker could’ve come up playing Gold Glove caliber defense, and the team would still be well under .500 with its terrible pitching staff
Walker’s bat absolutely does not make up for his defense. WAR will tell you that.
It’s not just that Walker has to play defense. It’s that when he plays they have to move all the other outfielders around to accommodate him.
Today Walker in right for reasons I can’t explain so Nootbaar had to play left for some reason and ONeill was on the bench
Opening day ONeill in center and Carlson on the bench.
Remember Edman in center? That’s because of Walker’s presence
All this nonsense just so the guy can play the outfield and do it terribly.
First of all, the WAR numbes are still counting his early debut when he wasn’t hitting enough to counter his bad defense to stay in the Big Leagues. By the end of the season, those numbers should be possitive.
Second, both kinds of WAR clearly overrate defensive value compared to offensive value, and they always have. Realistically, he does indeed provide more value with his bat than he loses in the field.
Third, the outfield movement among the other players isn’t causing any problems. Yes, trying to shoehorn O’Neill in CF so much early on was a mistake, but that wasn’t really because Walker was in RF but because they somehow forgot for a while that Carlson should always be in CF whenever he plays. Meanwhile, Carlson is being mostly platooned because of the OF logjam and because he still isn’t hitting righties all that well. When he sits, then either Nootbaar or Edman naturally moves over to CF. The huge difference between Walker’s and Carlson’s bat vs. righties more than makes up for even the large defensive difference between them.
Speaking of Edman, he was only playing CF so much due to Carlson (as well as O’Neill) being on the IL and the logjam in the middle infield, nothing to do with Walker. Besides, he did a darn good job out there! As for today, O’Neill naturally got a (partial) day off soon after returning from the IL as is common practice.
Dude Walker’s not hitting barely any better than he was in April. And the defense is still world class terrible.
WAR isn’t suddenly wrong because it says something you don’t want it to say. You are delusional.
All the defensive problems of the outfield stem from Walker being around.
ONeill didn’t need a day off he proved that with his base clearing double in the 9th
Walker should be at 3b or 1b. Since neither of those positions will be opening up, he’s stuck in a corner outfield position.
Walker’s development reminds me of Kyle Schwarber. Everyone knows he can’t field and making him try to learn it is actually hindering his focus on hitting.
Just ask Chad
Hopefully, Wainwright will be able to finish his career on at least a decent note.
Besides, they’re going to need him to help fill out the rotation one they assumedly trade Montgomery and/or Flaherty soon.
“Oh, boy, is this great!”
So he went from “starting to throw off a mound” last Monday to “starting an MLB game with a 65 pitch limit and no rehab assignments” ONE WEEK LATER after getting MULTIPLE injections in his shoulder. Yeah this seems like a good idea.
Wow well night as well give a chance to get two hundred.
Notching his 200th win will earn him a plaque next to Scott Rolen in the Hall of Very Good.
“Hall of very good”…Scott Rolen recently was inducted into the MLB Hall of Fame.
Not even close.
brook,
Waino belongs in the Hall of Very Good, but no one will ever again be able to deny Rolen is a Hall of Famer.
But Rolen should be Hall of the Very Good.
But, Francis, he’s not, despite what some people apparently refuse to acknowledge. He’s a Hall of Famer, end of story.
Adam being a veteran isn’t an idiot with his health especially his throwing arm plus our medical team would need to clear him which they did. Many pitchers do this treatment taking test and cortisone shots. Also did you read about Suarez piggy backing as he will be on a pitch limit same as he was on a rehab assignment.
Well, the point of a rehab assignment is to get back in shape after a long layoff. If you do manage to come back quickly, then you naturally don’t need a rehab assignment.
Did you know Albert Pujols never went on a rehab assignment in his entire 22-year career (and therefore also never played in a single AA game)? The few times he hit the DL, he was always back in 2-3 weeks, except for the one major injury he had in 2013 that kept him out for the rest of the season anyway.
Knock the move all you want, but they need to know whether Waino is gonna be able to be an effective starter going into the last week before the trade deadline. He has been a great Cardinal and I look forward to the day he gets his red jacket.
His red jacket for being good but not actually great? Yes, what a day that will be.
Getting into the Cardinals Hall of Fame is still a great honor. Being sarcastic about getting that honor but not the overall Hall of Fame makes a mockery of everyone from Ken Boyer to Matt Holliday.
He should have walked out last year with his brothers. But sometimes ego gets in the way, and haters, tell me differently because you know it to
World Baseball Classic is why Waino isn’t himself this year.
Jesus, can someone explain to me the thought process behind Zack Thompson? He was one of our best pitchers in Spring Training and moved up to being our top lefty at the start of the season before he was sent down to the minors to be stretched out as a starter due to DeWitt/Mo’s incompetence when it came to assembling starting rotation depth over the offseason. When Zack imploded as a starter in Memphis, he was brought back to the major leagues to do… what exactly? Start? Bullpen lefty? Who the hell knows. Now he’s back down at Memphis. to do what exactly? Start? Future bullpen lefty? Who the hell knows. Does anyone in management know?!?
Jesus has a lot of answers for you my friend, but I’m afraid he is quiet on any Cardinals deep mysteries.
He pitched two days in a row, they needed bullpen coverage., and he happens to have options remaining. He’ll be back up before too long.
Also, it wasn’t incompetence but back luck. Had Wainwright, Matz, Woodford, Hudson, Liberatore, and Thompson all pitched as expected, the Cardinals would be flush with starting depth and talking about how to improve the bullpen at the trade deadline as they sit in 1st place.
No. You gotta know when to hold ’em, know when to fold ’em, and yes even in baseball, know when to walk away.
Waino’s quest for 200 wins will dominate the headlines the rest of the way for the St. Louis Cardinals and media.
There certainly isn’t anything else for fans to cheer about.
Calling up Suarez and activating Wainwright says we’ve probably already seen the last games of Montgomery and Flaherty as Cardinals.
They might plug Hudson in to start the game on Wednesday or move up Mikolas a day. It’s even more likely Montgomery gets scratched from his start in Chicago on Friday.
If they option Suarez for Liberatore or another AAA arm after this game, it will mean a move is imminent.
I don’t start Jack or Monty again before the trade deadline if I don’t have to. They both kinda sucked in their last starts, why ruin their value or risk them getting injured?
The deadline isn’t for another week. Montgomery and Flaherty will probably get one more start each for the Cardinals before they get traded.
What’s the purpose of sending them out again to risk injury and lose their potential return in a trade for games that have no meaning to the Cardinals?
I really hope they don’t. Nothing good can come out of it for the Cardinals. If they send out either of these guys and they get hurt, the fans are going to go ballistic and I would certainly be one of them.
Cards are gonna need to give him at least 10 runs in the early going while he staggers and stumbles his way through 5 innings “only” giving up 5-6 runs, and just pray the bullpen can hold the lead. Tall order, but 199 isn’t impossible tonight.
Well, the bullpen did blow his chance for Win #199, but that’s the only part of your prediction that came true. Yes, they did score 10 runs, but it took all 9 innings to do so.
Very un-waino-like for him to make the rest of the season all about waino. Never thought he would be a dig me guy. Definitely going out on a low note.
He may end up helping the team with innings after they trade Flaherty and Monty.
I liked this story better when it starred Bernie Mac
Ian Happ looks forward to homering off him yet again when the Cubs play the Cardinals this weekend.