The Cardinals placed Nolan Gorman on the 10-day injured list yesterday (retroactive to April 2), and called up infielder Thomas Saggese from Triple-A in the corresponding roster move. Gorman is suffering from a right hamstring strain that he suffered while running the bases in last Tuesday’s game, though Gorman told Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and other reporters that the strain is “super-mild.” While the injury prevents Gorman from fielding at the moment, he is still able to hit and catch, so he’ll be able to continue with baseball activities while on the IL.
Gorman has delivered four hits (including a homer and a double) in his first nine plate appearances of the season, as he enters what might be a pivot point in his young career. The former top prospect has shown flashes of his potential over his first three MLB seasons, but his production trailed off badly in 2024, to the point that the Cards optioned Gorman to Triple-A last August. The crowded nature of the Cards lineup also means that Gorman isn’t getting everyday playing time, and he’ll have to keep hitting in order to carve out more of a regular role. Missing time to an injury won’t help these endeavors, but it seems like Gorman might just miss the minimum 10 days.
More from around the NL Central…
- Bryan Reynolds has been limited to DH duty over the Pirates’ last four games, as the right fielder’s throwing ability has been hampered by right triceps soreness. There isn’t any indication that Reynolds will need an IL stint since he’s still able to hit, though Reynolds has slashed only .194/.237/.306 in his first 38 PA of the season. With Reynolds now in the designated hitter spot, regular DH Andrew McCutchen will be getting some more action in the outfield, after appearing in only 13 games as an outfielder over the previous two seasons. McCutchen welcomed the return to the grass and praised Reynolds’ toughness, telling MLB.com’s Alex Stumpf that “it shows the character of him and what he brings to the team. A lot of people would say, ’Give me an IL stint and I’ll come back.’ He’s still capable and able to swing it….Unfortunately, he’s not 100 percent already in the season, but he’s going to do his job, and we’re going to do our best to support that and not make him feel like he has to rush back.”
- Manager Craig Counsell provided the Chicago Sun-Times’ Maddie Lee and other reporters with updates on two players on the Cubs’ injured list. Utilityman Vidal Brujan has been set back by some continued soreness in his right elbow, though Counsell said an MRI showed “nothing substantial.” Right-hander Javier Assad had a two-inning outing in extended Spring Training yesterday, and should have two or three more similar outings before he starts a minor league rehab assignment. Assad missed all of Spring Training due to a left oblique strain, so he’ll need a good deal of ramp-up time before he is ready to be activated from the 15-day IL.
Brujan stinks why waste a roster spot on him
Basically agree, but also: If they aren’t going to play Workman, why waste a roster spot–and a 26-man roster spot–on him?
You have 26 guys…whom do you suggest instead of Workman on the roster? At this point Matt Shaw is the starter.
And who ever you say must also be better than Dansby, Nico, both catchers, Busch, PCA, Tucker, Seiya and Happ.
If Workman or any guy at the end of the roster never play….that’s a good thing.
So a team that has a 108 yr rebuild and a 10 yr rebuild between championships is set with this lineup and there’s nobody that can replace them? Tucker is the only guy to pay but they won’t because they already paid for crap.
Hello troll…glad the Cubs keep you occupied. Of course Workman can be replaced…but I’m waiting on a viable answer and option.
And remember the answer is just not replacing Workman…it’s a guy being good enough to replace a starter…listed above…because, if not, he’s not getting at bats anyways.
Enjoy your cut and paste summer…us Cub fans love the humor in keeping you occupied when you could be collecting rent from that obsession in your head.
Workman is Rule 5. He’s either in or out I don’t think they want to lose him.
As a Cub fan I’ll fan as I want and of course you will do as well. Unfortunately this is, has and always will be a losing franchise because most Cub fans just love the park, the corporate BS and quite frankly don’t know anything about the game.
Hanley knows nothing about the game especially when he thinks Happ is a bust.
Maybe Caissie, to give him a taste of the majors? Or Cowles, if they feel they need an infielder? Workman doesn’t seem long for the roster in any case.
“Fan” is not a verb. Please join me in resisting this unpleasant linguistic trend….And that is not being a grammar cop: using nouns as verbs is a genuinely nasty practice.
@alan53, two things. First, “fan” can be a verb in current usage. It can also be a noun. Second, unlike Latin, English is a living language where not only are new words introduced but old words are adopted for new uses and new meanings. Some argue that English’s flexibility is what makes it a powerful language.
Same with Berti. I know the Cubs are rolling right now but sprinkle in some of these other guys besides Turner once in a while, especially in the blowout wins.
Ive been quite frustrated w the lack of playing time for Workman. He was hitting well in ST, yes it’s just ST, but why not give him some reps to stay locked in. His glove and arm are well-regarded, he could be used as a defensive replacement especially in blowouts, and maybe get an AB or two. If he’s just going to rot on the bench, give him back to Detroit. I wonder if he will soon hit the IL w the old phantom injury.
Someone needs to tell Dream that using Reynolds as the DH because of being hampered in throwing makes sense
He was adamant about this the other day claiming that the Cutch not playing as the DH had nothing to do with Reynolds injury
News to me. In my multiverse timeline you said it didn’t make sense and I was the one who explained it to you.
You typed
Trying to rationalize Shelton’s daily lineups are indeed puzzling.
He’s used 3 different players batting lead off so far.
Frazier, Pham and Jack
In yesterday’s game, Pham batted 4th. Historically he’s not a good run producer and has been horrible at the plate thus far this season
Cutch hasn’t been in the lineup because of an injury to Reynolds which makes no sense
These are just examples of how puzzling Shelton is when it comes to his lineups
I replied
Reynolds can’t throw. Cutch can’t hold up playing outfield. Only 1 person can DH.
Here’s the link.
mlbtraderumors.com/2025/04/pirates-option-david-be…
Reynolds can’t throw.
Reynolds can’t throw.
Reynolds can’t throw.
Reynolds can’t throw.
Reynolds can’t throw.
Very first sentence of my reply.
Theman said Cutch hasn’t been in the lineup because of an injury to Reynolds which makes no sense
Theman
No sense
No sense
No sense
No sense
No sense
Dream said
Reynolds can’t throw.
Reynolds can’t throw.
Reynolds can’t throw.
Reynolds can’t throw.
Reynolds can’t throw.
Are just old and confused? Or fantasizing about being me again?
Does he push your buttons often?
Why tell the dream anything..he’s just a myth in his own mind..total bag of manure.
I am right 99.847 percent of the time and beloved by many here. Why I have same user name and don’t have to change it every month like you.
Looks thumbs up all my comments already! They either love me or want me to look foolish by making it look like I liked my own comments!
I bet that you even paint your face with Cheetos every morning!
He’s one of the more intelligent posters on here. He’s great at analyzing how players are valued by the teams. And at showing why certain players get more or less money when signing their contracts than we may have anticipated.
Awww your bromance is inspiring
Thats cute
I may be wrong, but I don’t think many people want a .194/.237/.306 hitter to rush back to the lineup.
Even if the Cardinals do contend this year, especially if Gorman bounces back, they are going to need to trade away at least one position player by next offseason just to clear up some room in the lineup.
Whether or not that player is Arenado, I don’t know, but every single one of their current 10 starting position players, as well as their promising bench players in Siani, Baker, and Pages, is under contract or team control until at least 2027. Then things will get even more crowded if Saggese and/or Weatherholt live up to the hype.
I don’t think the pitching will support anything more than fringe contention for the Cardinals. There will need to be some trades made from the infield and catching. A jam of players is developing.
The way Arenado is hitting and fielding, I expect him to be gone by the deadline. The last two years of his contract are reasonable for any serious contender needing help at the deadline. The Cardinals are still in rebuild mode. They are showing promise with position players, but Arenado is rightfully in win now mode.
I’m not sure we can keep saying that it is a rebuild at this point, and if they’re in contention, there is no way they would be moving Arenado at the deadline. I don’t believe he actually wants to go anywhere, and I think he’ll be staying here for the remainder of the contract as long as we’re competitive. A lot of baseball to be played before we will have an idea of what it’ll look like this summer.
CardsFan57; I still can see a Dodgers, Cardinals trade by the deadline especially if Muncy struggles at the plate & defensively at 3rd.
The pitching is actually pretty good itself. The bullpen is great just as it was last year.
As for the starting rotation, they have legitimate #1 and #2 starters with Gray and Fedde. The rest is questionable but also has a lot of potential. Pallante was good last year. Matz is finally healthy, at least for now. Liberatore may finally be breaking out. We’ll see if Mikolas has anything left in the tank. Then they have arguably the best 7th starter in MLB, McGreevy, standing by, along with a couple other promising guys in the AAA rotation.
Anyway, this is a transitional year, not a rebuild. The plan all along was to seriously contend again in 2026 or 2027 at the latest. They may just be ahead of even that schedule. If that is the case, then they won’t be trading away anyone at the trade deadline unless it’s to help them fill a different hole that they may have at the time.
After watching the pirates new acquisition cannario today,seems to me this guy can’t hit off of a T-ball. Two pitches down the middle and two swings and misses. I would love to see Reynolds move to first base. It would take care of that. Easier to fill outfield spots than 1st base.
When will they fire Shelton? Wonder what the betting odds are? And the new beard has to go, he looks like the magagoon Mel Gibson
Canario struck out with the bases loaded on a pitch right down the middle of the plate
I could have probably at least made contact
Another weak offensive and pathetic effort by these minors leaguer’s while again striking out in double digits
4 lousy hits and are now 2-7 to start the season
How long does Nutting wait until he sees the writing on the wall that Shelton is simply a lousy manager ?
Canario strikes out more than a third of his plate appearances. Enjoy the breeze!
TheMan 3
We got lucky with Bart on the waiver wire.
Cherington keeps thinking he going to get lucky again. It will be a long time before that happens again. Maybe this guy can turn it around but most likely be DFAed again.
I’m glad Canario is going to get some at bats. The Cubs refused to give him any run. He should have been grabbed by the White Sox, but they’re too busy going down the same path that led to the last two seasons of success 🙄
The White Sox would have had to spend money to get him. That’s what the Mets and the Pirates did to jump the waiver claim line.
How long does Nutting wait until he sees the writing on the wall that Shelton is simply a lousy manager ?
At least 5 years
If the NL Central were a hedge fund portfolio, it’d be over-leveraged on mid-volatility assets without insurance. One early-season shock (like a Gorman setback or Reynolds power outage) creates cascading portfolio drag that no amount of Triple-A swaps can hedge.
TL;DR: It’s cooked and it’s only April.
Losing Gorman for 10 days isn’t much of an issue, since the Cardinals have a position player logjam, anyway. They can simply play one of their catchers alongside their other 8 starting position players (not counting Gorman) most of the time while Gorman is out.
Heck, aside from the catchers, Gorman was so far getting the least amount of playing time among the “starters,” anyway, with Donovan getting most of the time at 2B and Burleson as the primary DH.
@Lanidrac
Gorman’s been hot, hitting .444 with a homer and double in just 9 trips to the plate. He’s not some extra piece; he’s a big swing they need. Shuffling in Donovan (who’s more about singles) or Burleson (still figuring it out) doesn’t cover that gap—it’s like trading a slugger for a pinch runner. And calling up Saggese from Triple-A? He’s never played in the majors— that’s not a fix, it’s a gamble.
Aside from “9 trips to the plate”, there is very little correct in your post.
Gorman is hitting .500 not .444. He walked once.
Donovan is not being shuffled in. He is a starter.
Burleson garnered more abs than Gorman whilst both were healthy. He isn’t being shuffled in.
Saggese has played in the majors. In 2024.
Gorman is due to miss the minimum amount of games during his dl stint.
It doesn’t need to be “a fix” and certainly isn’t “a gamble” to bring up a gut that MIGHT start a game before Gorman comes back.
What was the point of your comment?
Surprising that there is talk about STL when a rain out is a good thing for that rebuild.
#waitingforthefreefall