Cardinals Expected To Designate Garrett Hampson For Assignment

The Cardinals are expected to designate utility man Garrett Hampson for assignment in a series of roster moves slated to become official tomorrow, according to a report from Katie Woo of The Athletic. Hampson’s active roster spot will go to Alec Burleson, who is slated to be activated from the injured list tomorrow. Hampson’s 40-man roster spot will go to left-hander Nick Raquet, who will have his contract selected to the major league roster tomorrow. Raquet will take the 40-man spot of right-hander Andre Granillo, who is expected to be optioned to Triple-A.

Hampson, 31 next month, opened the season as a member of the Diamondbacks after signing with the club on a minor league deal during the offseason. He was selected to the big league roster but ultimately appeared in just 18 games for the club before being designated for assignment in early May. Later that month, he was signed by the Reds to a major league deal and stuck with the organization until late June, when he was designated for assignment once again and plucked off waivers by the Cardinals.

Hampson was hitting just .167/.310/.188 across 24 games in the majors this year when he arrived in St. Louis, and his offense hasn’t really improved during his ten weeks with the organization. In fact, they’ve trended in the wrong direction, as he’ll finish his Cardinals career with a .103/.133/.138 slash line across 31 plate appearances. Hampson got less work at the dish in with St. Louis than he did with Arizona and Cincinnati, but he did actually end up appearing in more games due to his role as a defensive replacement and pinch runner late in games. He appeared in all three outfield spots for the Cardinals during his tenure with the organization and also played second base, third base, and shortstop.

That versatility has generally been Hampson’s calling card over the years. While he’s a career .235/.298/.353 hitter in spite of his offensive numbers being inflated by five years at Coors Field, he’s managed to generally stay in the majors thanks to his value as a versatile bench player. Prior to his three-team tour around the National League this year, he had played for the Marlins and Royals since leaving Colorado. Going forward, the Cardinals will have seven days after the move becomes official to try and pass Hampson through waivers. Perhaps he’ll be claimed by a team in need of bench depth down the stretch, but if he clears waivers he’ll have the option to either accept an outright assignment to Triple-A for the final few weeks of the season or elect free agency.

Hampson’s departure makes room for the return of Burleson, who last played on August 28 due to a bout of wrist inflammation. Burleson has enjoyed something of a breakout season with the Cardinals this year, as the 26-year-old has hit a solid .286/.337/.451 with 16 home runs in just 122 games. That’s far and away the best triple slash of his career, and while that won’t be enough to push the Cardinals into the postseason this year Burleson figures to once again split time between first base, DH, and the outfield corners with St. Louis next season.

As for Raquet, the 29-year-old lefty will actually be making his big league debut if he gets into a game with the Cardinals. A third-round pick by the Nationals all the way back in 2017, Raquet worked in the lower minors with the Nationals through the end of the 2019 season but fell off the map after the canceled minor league season in 2020 before resurfacing as a professional in the independent Atlantic League back in 2023. He posted a 3.71 ERA in 24 starts with the York Revolution that year, and caught on with the Cardinals on a minor league deal last season.

Raquet has been working his way up the minor league ladder ever since, and now that he’s posted a 1.68 ERA between Double- and Triple-A as a reliever for the Cardinals this year he’ll get the opportunity to show what he can do at the big league level. As for Granillo, the rookie right-hander has just 14 MLB appearances under his belt while working as a multi-inning reliever, with a 4.71 ERA in 21 innings of work. He’ll head to Triple-A, where he has a sterling 1.50 ERA in 24 outings, to wait for his next big league opportunity to arrive.