Reports last week suggested that the Cardinals were thinking about utilizing a six-man rotation as a way of finding innings for both the veterans on the staff and for the younger arms the Cards are prioritizing in this semi-rebuild year for the franchise. Manager Oliver Marmol confirmed to reporters (including The Athletic’s Katie Woo) today that the Cardinals will indeed use six starters during a busy stretch of the schedule that will see St. Louis play 26 games over 27 days from April 11 through May 7.
There is a bit of surprise in which starters will be involved in the expanded rotation, as the Cards optioned Michael McGreevy to Triple-A Memphis today. McGreevy is one of the Cardinals’ top pitching prospects, and after impressing in his first 23 MLB innings last season, seemed poised to break camp with the team after posting a 1.08 ERA over 16 2/3 spring innings.
However, Matthew Liberatore also turned heads in camp, with a 1.62 across his own 16 2/3 frames of work. As a result, Liberatore was named as one of the initial starting five (along with Sonny Gray, Miles Mikolas, Erick Fedde, and Andre Pallante), with Steven Matz slated to work as a long man before becoming the sixth starter.
Obviously, a single injury could change these plans considerably, and some other health issues in camp also perhaps factored in the Cardinals’ plans. Zack Thompson and Drew Rom are both dealing with injuries, so McGreevy became needed as a Triple-A depth arm given the lack of other ready options. Given how rare it is for a pitching staff to get through a season in one piece, it might not be long before McGreevy gets another opportunity in the Show.
The “you can never have too much pitching” mantra looms large in what is technically a surplus situation for the Cardinals pitching staff. Yet the number of arms available also relates to a strangely quiet offseason, as the Cards ended up retaining most of their veteran talent despite their stated goal last fall to view 2025 as something of a re-development year. The team’s inability to trade Nolan Arenado garnered the most headlines, yet on the pitching end, St. Louis also opted to keep Fedde, who has only one year remaining on his contract. Gray had no interest in waiving his no-trade clause to go elsewhere, and trading Mikolas or Matz (also free agents next winter) could’ve probably required the Cards to eat some money since both pitchers are coming off down years.
Mikolas or Matz could be more plausibly moved closer to the deadline, perhaps in salary-dump fashion once some of their salaries are already doled out over the first half. Fedde might be one of the most sought-after rental pitchers at the deadline if he matches his 2024 form, though naturally the Cardinals are hoping they can return to contention this year, rather than look to sell at the deadline.
Marmol also announced the rest of the Cardinals’ roster for Opening Day, including the news that Victor Scott II won the team’s center field competition. Scott was battling with Michael Siani for the job, yet Scott outhit not only Siani (who struggled badly) but also just about the rest of the team by posting a 1.225 OPS over 49 plate appearances. Scott may not play every single day since Lars Nootbaar also figures to get some time in center as the Cardinals juggle around their lineup, but Scott has put himself in position to get the lion’s share of playing time up the middle.
Arenado, Willson Contreras, and Masyn Winn will be the only true lineup regulars for St. Louis, and Brendan Donovan is also expected to play every day but at multiple positions. Moving Arenado would’ve helped open up third base and a lineup position to get more players onto the field, yet Marmol said he is confident of the team’s plans to rotate players around without necessarily adhering to strict platoons.
“I’m going to do my absolute best to get everybody the necessary amount of at-bats for us to know what we have at the end of the year….We’ll see what this looks like in 30 days, 60 days, 90 days. But we’ll have a [lineup] rotation that while we’re all healthy, still gets guys at-bats,” Marmol said.
Infielder Jose Fermin won’t be part of this mix in the early going, as Fermin was optioned to Triple-A today. Woo notes that Fermin was told earlier this week that he would be part of the Opening Day roster, yet the Cardinals’ plan apparently changed in the last few days. Without Fermin, the Cards don’t have a proper backup shortstop, yet the versatile Donovan will handle that role if Winn is given a breather.
This spring, Campbell was ranked by Baseball America as the fourth-best prospect in the sport, and MLB Pipeline (7th) and The Athletic’s Keith Law (9th) had similarly high praise. After his college days, Campbell made some changes to his approach at the plate that transformed his hitting ability, so this make-up and maturity has impressed evaluators along with his obvious physical skills. Campbell has something of an unusual swing that still generate lots of hard contact to all fields, plus more power could still be unlocked. Campbell is a plus runner and he can play all over the diamond, as he has seen time at second base, third base, shortstop, and all three outfield positions over his minor league career.