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Cardinals’ Sonny Gray to pitch vs. Phillies, St. Louis gets multiple injury updates

Originally posted on ClutchPoints | By Joshua Valdez | Last updated 4/9/24

Nothing is more disheartening for a baseball team when it starts off its 162-game season with several key players injured. The St. Louis Cardinals (5-6) have already gotten wounded early on, but it appears that many of their pieces may finally be on the mend. Starting pitcher Sonny Gray will make his season debut Tuesday night vs. the Philadelphia Phillies (5-5), albeit on a 65-pitch limit.

The three-time all-star is returning from a hamstring injury just in time, as many of Philadelphia’s hitters have struggled against Gray, via MLB.com. Additionally, it appears that the Cardinals have several other players returning in the near future, via MLB.com. When will the club finally be at full strength?

The Cardinals are scheduled to get seven more players back by mid-May

St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Sonny Gray (54) pitches against the Washington Nationals in the first inning at CACTI Ballpark of the Palm Beaches. © Jim Rassol-USA TODAY Sports

The Cardinals are lucky to have no players on the 60-day injured list (IL). Gray is the first of eight players coming back on the 10/15-day IL, with the following seven scheduled to come back as the weeks progress:

LF Lars Nootbaar (rib fractures)
Expected return: April 12
RHP Keynan Middleton (right forearm strain)
Expected return: Mid-April
LHP Drew Rom (left shoulder biceps tendinitis)
Expected return: Mid-April
DH Matt Carpenter (right oblique strain)
Expected return: Late April
RHP Riley O’Brien (right forearm strain)
Expected return: May
CF Dylan Carlson (sprained left AC joint)
Expected return: Mid-May
CF Tommy Edman (right wrist surgery)
Expected return: Late May

The return of all of these players should help the Cardinals climb the NL Central standings, where they currently sit in last place. A particularly tough loss was their 10-3 defeat at the hands of the Miami Marlins (1-10) at home on Sunday. This is still the only game that the Marlins have won this season, a sign of St. Louis badly needing their depth back.

With the Cardinals already being four games behind the first-place Pittsburgh Pirates (9-2), it’s essential for the team to not dig itself into a hole this early in the year. The return of Gray, their prized $75 million free agent acquisition, should help matters.

However, their offense needs help too, as the team is hitting just .217 collectively, good for 22nd in the league. St. Louis will learn its true potential this season once all of their players finally come back.

This article first appeared on ClutchPoints and was syndicated with permission.

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