St. Louis Cardinals Place Randal Grichuk on DL; Jason Heyward Pressed into Center Field Duty
The St. Louis Cardinals suffered a major loss on Monday, even if it’s just for the short term, as outfielder Randal Grichuk was placed on the 15-day disabled list with elbow tightness. Grichuk felt pain in his right elbow while throwing during Sunday’s loss to the Miami Marlins and was removed after the seventh inning.
The 24-year-old Grichuk had emerged as a serious National League Rookie of the Year candidate in recent weeks and was perhaps the Cardinals’ hottest hitter. Over 85 games, Grichuk hit .284/.333/.561 with 15 homers and 44 RBI, and in recent weeks he had emerged as the club’s everyday center fielder.
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To fill his spot on the roster, the Cardinals recalled outfielder Tommy Pham, who was with the club for a short spell in July and played in 13 games, hitting .182/.265/.341 with one homer and three RBI. However, if the Cardinals are going to get their nine best hitters into the lineup on a nightly basis, it seems that Jason Heyward may now end up getting the majority of the starts in center until either Grichuk or Matt Holliday returns. Hayward hadn’t played center field since 2013 until relieving Grichuk in Sunday’s game, and he’s played just 23 games there over his six-season big-league career, but he started there on Monday night against San Francisco. It could be another huge complication, however, if Hayward ends up being seriously injured following his early exit in Monday’s game.
Besides Pham and defensive specialist Peter Bourjos, Stephen Piscotty could also be a potential option in center, as he played four games there for Triple-A Memphis earlier this season. However, the only scenario in which it would really make sense to have Piscotty in center would be if Brandon Moss and Mark Reynolds were stationed at the outfield corners, which would require another player at first base.