The St. Louis Cardinals announced the activation of pitcher Carlos Martinez from the injured list today. Martinez has been on the COVID-19 injured list since July.
The plan had been for Martinez to return to the rotation this year after pitching exclusively out of the bullpen in 2019. Martinez made just one start before the outbreak of COVID-19 shut down his season. He’ll likely return to the rotation for one of today’s doubleheader games.
To make room on the 40-man roster, Ryan Meisinger was designated for assignment. Meisinger, 26, made two appearances, logging 2 2/3 scoreless frames, allowing 1 hit and 4 walks, while striking out 3. After making his major league debut with the Orioles in 2018, the Cardinals selected Meisinger off waivers and stored him in Triple-A for 2019, where he put up 35 frames of a 3.09 ERA.
Dylan Carlson has also been optioned to the team’s alternate training site to make room on the active roster. The move was made primarily because of a lack of playing time for Carlson, per Derrick S. Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (via Twitter). The 21-year-old outfielder slashed .162/.215/.243 across 79 plate appearances during his first taste of the show.
Given the other options available, it’s a little suspect that the Cardinals couldn’t find playing time for Carlson – should that have been their goal. Fellow outfielders Dexter Fowler and Austin Dean remain out following COVID-19 protocols. Other options in the outfield have struggled for the Cardinals. Lane Thomas (52 wRC+, 225 PA) and Tyler O’Neill (76 wRC+, 98 PA) are options to flank Harrison Bader (140 wRC+) in the grass, though Tommy Edman and Rangel Ravelo could also see time in the outfield. Brad Miller has some experience in the outfield, but the Cardinals have yet to play him there.
cue the “service time manipulation” comments
If so, they are just comments based in denial. BFIB, God’s gift to baseball, having to eat some humble pie. I read the headline and laughed.
Said it last April. Still bulleye true today. Middling team, middling system, with a middling record.
Damn.. i have never seen a commenter on this site so insecure since Xabial was trolling. Not sure what the Cardinals did to you pal but it’s ok… you’ll get through it eventually.
Don’t mind him although I really wished they cleaned this board up for fans to actually discuss baseball and their teams. Carlson was being overmatched I felt in his at bats especially with breaking balls hoping he can work on this too. O’Neil and Bader are showing signs of life again too just need to be consistent. Plus Edman is at 3rd so it gives us a chance to see what these three can do. Free Justin Williams sometime
We could use William’s stat. Dean could actually get some playing time if he gets healthy. I feel a trade this off season will free up some outfield time for William’s or we will trade Williams which would be stupid. I hope liberatore turns out great because arozarena, who would have solved our outfield woes, is killing it in tampa
Edman is also getting a bunch of time in the OF (in addition to 3B), and Fowler will be back before too long.
He was a top 20 prospect coming into this year and he struggled in his first taste of the bigs, like almost all players do (even hall of famers!). I’m a cubs fan so have no qualms bashing the cardinals but there is nothing to see here. You are right that it isn’t service time manipulation though. If a guy like him isn’t starting then send him to the alternate site to continue getting ABs
They sent a prospect down for a reset. It happens all the time.
And saying the Cardinals are a middling team is ignorant. They are the most successful franchise in the NL. They won the central and were in the NLCS last season in what was a “down” year according to most people before the season started.
Has there been a more consistently winning team in the last 30 years?
A legitimate argument was before he had been called up. However, too much time has passed, so there is no point now. He’s just not hitting and not helping. Let’s discuss something else.
cue the “.162/.215/.243 isn’t slashing” comment.
I mean, the guy isn’t hitting, but it’s not like there’s a minor league team that he can be sent down to so he can get playing time. I guess there’s intersquad games he can play in, but this season a lack of playing time really doesn’t make sense as a reason to send a guy down.
He can at least get consistent at bats at the alternate training site, which is more than he was getting on the active roster.
I doubt it’s due to service time. His numbers show he just wasn’t ready yet. They could keep him up and he could continue to do very poorly or he could go back and learn from his mistakes and, perhaps, get his confidence back if it was shaken. If he were hitting above the Mendoza line, there’d be an argument for keeping him, but that’s a rough start to a year.
I thought Fowler was out for digestive issues.
As for Carlson, with this screwed up season, let him play and learn. He’s our future, not Matt Carpenter.
Matt Carpenter doesn’t play LF.
Edman didn’t play the outfield either but here we are.
edman has played a few in the outfield
Edman did not play the outfield until last season.
you didn’t specify
Yeah, but Edman did learn to do it and is actually a decent defensive outfielder. Carpenter is a below average defensive infielder who hasn’t played the outfield for several years.
You can’t afford to let underachieving youngsters “play and learn” when you’re a heavy contender with a middling offense in a late season playoff race.
When did Lane Thomas get 225 PA’s?
Yeah, that’s a mistake. 25 (now 27 after yesterday’s games) is the correct number.
Cardinals have played 28 games since Carlson was added to the roster. He started 21 of those games, He has had 79 plate appearances and has slashed .162/.215/.243, with 8 singles, 3 doubles, 1 home run, 5 walks and 23 strikeouts. Carlson has 84.7 average exit velocity which is in the bottom 5% of the league. His xBA, xSLG, K% and Whiff% are all in the bottom 16% of the league, and he’s been hopeless against offspeed pitches. Please, tell me more about how “it’s a little suspect that the Cardinals couldn’t find playing time for Carlson”. In such a compact schedule, he starts 75% of games and showed he wasn’t ready for MLB. Absurd statement to make
Well, the thing about the playing time is now that Bader has worked his way back to essentially being a full-time starter again (while Edman is a full-time starter between 3B and CO), that leaves just two lineup spots per game to rotate between Carlson, Carpenter, O’Neill, and Thomas, and just one open spot once Fowler returns. None of those 4 guys have hit well or even decently, but Carpenter and O’Neill have at least hit somewhat better than the other two, while Thomas only just got back from the COVID list and has barely had any playing time yet this season to see if he can turn around his slow start, so Carlson (along with having a full set of remaining options) is the odd man out rather than try to turn around his dreadful start in a part-time rotation.
Why would the Cardinals activate such an unstable player right at the time the team needs the strongest players playing…. Both mentally and physically. Martinez fits in neither category