ST. LOUIS (KMOX) - The St. Louis Cardinals are already starting the 2024 season shorthanded with centerfielder Tommy Edman set to start the season on injured list (IL). Now their left fielder and number one starter will join Edman on the IL to begin the season.
On Friday, Cardinals manager Oli Marmol told reporters left fielder Lars Nootbaar and starting pitcher Sonny Gray will both start the season on the injured list to begin the year.
In addition to the injured list news, Marmol also announced that left-handed pitcher Zack Thompson will make the rotation, while LHP Matthew Liberatore will make the roster, but in the bullpen.
Gray has been working his way back from a hamstring injury he suffered in a start against the Washington Nationals. While the Cardinals have said the injury is less serious than the ones he suffered with the Minnesota Twins and Gray is making progress, the team eventually felt that Gray still needed more time to get ready and he will make three rehab-like starts before he rejoins the rotation. The first one will take place Saturday.
As for Nootbaar, he has been dealing with a ribcage injury he suffered while playing in the outfield during Spring. The Cardinals announced Nootbaar will begin swinging in the near future.
The Cardinals do have depth in the outfield, with Alec Burleson, Dylan Carlson and Michael Siani in the depth chart and Brendan Donovan has experience playing outfield, with Donovan playing left field Thursday against the Houston Astros. Nootbaar's inclusion into the injured list will pave the path and fuel more speculation and calls for prized outfield prospect Victor Scott II to make the Opening Day roster after a solid showing in Spring Training.
Thompson's inclusion into the rotation isn't all surprising. With the Cardinals set to begin a grueling schedule to begin the year, which includes starting the season playing 14 games in 15 days, a six man rotation has been entertained by the Cardinals.
How that looks without Gray to start the year is undetermined, but Thompson always seemed to have the edge as the Cardinals sixth starter over Liberatore, with Thompson throwing a solid 2.81 ERA in 16 innings and striking out 14 compared to Liberatore's 6.32 ERA in 15.2 innings and striking out 13.
With Gray injured, Thompson will start the season as the Cardinals fifth starter with the rotation to start the year shaping to look like Miles Mikolas, Lance Lynn, Kyle Gibson, Steven Matz and Thompson in that order.