Cardinals Look for Others to Step Up in Absence of Hottest Hitter

The St. Louis Cardinals are looking for other players to step up with the news that Ivan Herrera will spend an extended period of time on the IL with a strained hamstring. Herrera leads the team in batting average, on base percentage, slugging percentage and OPS among players who have seen at least 50 at bats. A trio of young players will attempt to step in and fill that production.

Herrera’s Hot Year

The 25-year-old catcher has been enjoying a breakout year. He has a slash line of .320/.392/.533. Seventeen of his 41 starts have come in the five or six spot in the batting order. His ability to hit for a high average with dangerous power have made him a linchpin for the Cardinal’s improved offense this year.

“It’s unfortunate because he’s been doing a really nice job of swinging a really hot bat and being a real threat offensively, so we’re going to miss that,” Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol told reporters on Friday.

This is Herrera’s second stint on the IL of the season. He missed about a month earlier with a bruised knee. Now his hamstring injury will keep him out two to six weeks. Herrera has eight home runs, eight doubles and 36 RBI in 150 at-bats.

“This is just a rock on my path, and I feel like I’m going to come back stronger like I did before,” Herrera told MLB.com’s John Denton.

Next Man Up

The Cardinals will look for a trio of young players to increase their playing time in Herrera’s absence. Of the right-hander’s 41 starts, 28 of them have been as the designated hitter. With Pedro Pages already taking the majority of the catcher starts this season, Herrera’s position as DH provides several options for the Cardinals.

The Cardinal’s No. 5 prospect Thomas Saggese was called up in a corresponding move on Friday. He made the four-hour trek from Memphis to St. Louis in time to start the Cardinals game against the Cincinatti Reds. The 23-year-old has slashed .333/.354/.489 in 45 MLB at bats so far this season. He can play second base, shortstop, or third base. He’ll look to continue to prove himself at the big-league level.

Nolan Gorman and Alec Burleson will likely see the majority of starts at DH in Herrera’s stead. Burleson can also play first base if the Cardinals want to give Willson Contreras a day off from defending, but keep his bat in the lineup as DH. Burleson has already been playing in the majority of the Cardinals games as he can also take an outfield position. He is slashing .312/.351/.438 with seven home runs in 65 games this season. The Cardinals will need him to continue that success to fill Herrera’s production in the heart of the order.

Gorman can play second or third base. However, defensively he will continue to be blocked by Brendan Donovan and Nolan Arenado. The 25-year-old has struggled at times this season and the Cardinals have not always found consistent playing time for him. However, he is hot at the plate lately. In the last month he has been slashing .273/.365/.527 with three home runs among his seven extra base hits. His past month is a much-improved slash line to his season-long one of .216/.316/.381.

Surviving The Injury

The news about Herrera came at a brutal time. The Cardinals are in the middle of a stretch of 29 games in 30 days. It also came the day after the team played its sixth double header of the season. As a result, players like Contreras and Arenado had scheduled days off. Marmol told reporters before the game that it was a “survival day” The Cardinals managed to pull off a 6-1 win even in those circumstances over the Reds.

After an MLB-best record in May, the Cardinals have faltered a bit in June going 8-10 so far. They entered the month second in the division and tied for a Wild Card spot. The Milwaukee Brewers have caught up to them and are now tied for second in the N.L. Central while the Reds are right on the Cardinals heels. The team needs to keep winning to stay in the Postseason hunt. Herrera’s injury is a blow to a team in a crowded Wild Card race.

“It’s part of 162 [games] and it’s not always going to be perfect,” Marmol told Denton. “It’ll give more opportunities for [Nolan Gorman] and others to step in there [as the DH] and show what they’re capable of, and that will be fun to watch. Not ideal, but it’s all good.”

For the Cardinals to survive this stretch they’ll need Burleson and Gorman to provide power at the plate. They’ll also need Saggese to stay sharp enough to be productive when called upon. The schedule isn’t doing them any favors either. Seven of their next 15 games are against their rival and division leader Chicago Cubs, a team they haven’t faced yet this season.