The Cardinals are placing infielder JJ Wetherholt on the 10-day injured list with right wrist tendonitis, according to a team announcement. Infielder César Prieto is being recalled from Triple-A Memphis in a corresponding move. According to Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat, Wetherholt has been experiencing wrist pain for the past month, which he attributed to a career-high workload. He tried a rest and recovery approach to no effect as the pain increased in recent days. Wetherholt, who went 0-for-4 in yesterday’s 6-2 loss to Pittsburgh, is scheduled to see a specialist in Arizona and expects a minimal stay on the IL. St. Louis is one game under .500 at 68-69. They are 4.5 games behind the Padres for the final NL wild card spot, and the Diamondbacks and Marlins are between the two clubs. FanGraphs gives the Redbirds just a 1.6% chance of making the playoffs, which isn’t too surprising considering they sold some players before the deadline. Recent injuries have only worsened those slim chances. In the past two weeks, right-handers Andre Pallante and Hunter Dobbins have landed on the disabled list with elbow inflammation and forearm stiffness, respectively. Position players have also been affected. Shortstop Masyn Winn went on the injured list on August 25 (retroactive to the 22nd) with a broken left thumb. Just yesterday, third baseman Blaze Jordan was placed on the injured list with a sprained left ankle, which he suffered in Thursday’s game. He will be out for at least a few weeks. Along with Winn and Jordan, Wetherholt is now the third starting infielder the Cardinals have lost to injury in the last week. He is also the most valuable player of the three. Having entered the season as a Top-100 prospect according to MLB Pipeline, Wetherholt has hit .242/.343/.370 with 17 home runs, 14 steals and a wRC+ of 104 that checks in slightly above average. That’s a solid performance by any measure, and he’s backed it up with stellar defense. Wetherholt’s +21 outs above average are well ahead of the Brewers’ Brice Turang (+12) for the best mark among second basemen. In Wetherholt’s absence, the Cardinals can turn to José Fermín as a cornerstone. The 27-year-old utility player gets the most reps in left field and third base, although he has 11 games at second base this year. He avoids strikeouts quite well and walks at a near-average rate of 8.6%, although he doesn’t offer much in the way of power. Prieto and Ramón Urías can also influence. Both struggled with the dish in limited samples. Aside from the impact on his team, Wetherholt could also fall behind in the race for NL Rookie of the Year. MLBTR’s Leo Morgenstern polled readers last week about that same race, and 40% of readers predicted the Reds’ Sal Stewart would win, compared to 39% who voted for Wetherholt. While Stewart’s 2.6 fWAR trails Wetherholt’s 4.4, Stewart is a more productive hitter (120 wRC+ to Wetherholt’s 104) and leads the Senior Circuit with 104 RBI. With Wetherholt now on the verge of losing time, Stewart could take the lead in that race. Photo courtesy of Katie Stratman, Imagn Images (via Reuters Connect)
