The St. Louis Cardinals officially will be without the services of their top pitcher on Opening Day.
St. Louis boosted its starting rotation by signing three-time All-Star Sonny Gray but he recently suffered an unfortunate hamstring injury.
The Cardinals' rotation still is thin despite making three additions this offseason and if Gray ends up missing a lot of time, the perception around the club will completely change.
On the bright side, this doesn't sound like it's going to be the case. St. Louis recently received a promising update on Gray and he's making significant progress. While this is the case, he officially has been ruled out for Opening Day but may not go on the Injured List, according to The Athletic's Katie Woo.
"Sonny Gray will not be cleared before Opening Day, Oli Marmol says, but a path remains to where he won’t require an (Injured List) stint and could potentially pitch later in the first road trip of the season," Woo said. "Miles Mikolas is your Cardinals Opening Day starter."
If Gray can return to the mound and not miss much time, that would be great for St. Louis. The Cardinals have high expectations for the 2024 season despite an abysmal 2023 campaign. St. Louis is considered by many to be the top team in the National League Central but will only have a chance to do so if Gray is healthy.
St. Louis already is dealing with a handful of injuries and Gray certainly is the most prominent. It's disappointing he won't be ready for Opening Day, but it sounds like he will be back soon.
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