Arch Authority
Fansided

St. Louis Cardinals Recall Sam Tuivailala for Doubleheader

By Patrick Karraker

Apr 9, 2017; St. Louis, MO, USA; St. Louis Cardinals relief pitcher Sam Tuivailala (64) pitches to a Cincinnati Reds batter during the eighth inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 9, 2017; St. Louis, MO, USA; St. Louis Cardinals relief pitcher Sam Tuivailala (64) pitches to a Cincinnati Reds batter during the eighth inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports /
twitterfacebookreddit

Sam Tuivailala is back as the 26th man for the second game of the Cardinals’ doubleheader with the Blue Jays.

MLB teams are allowed to add a 26th player to their active rosters for doubleheaders (so long as the second game has been scheduled at least 48 hours in advance), and the St. Louis Cardinals took advantage of the opportunity to expand their roster on Thursday, recalling righthanded reliever Sam Tuivailala from the Triple-A Memphis Redbirds. He’ll be active for the second game of the doubleheader on Thursday night.

This is already the second major-league stint of the season for Tuivailala, who unexpectedly made the Opening Day roster after Trevor Rosenthal had to begin the year on the disabled list. Over three appearances, the 24-year-old reliever had a 3.00 ERA, 1.33 WHIP, two strikeouts, and a walk.

Tuivailala has enjoyed a very successful season at Memphis thus far, throwing 6 1/3 scoreless innings while posting a 0.32 WHIP, striking out seven, and walking one batter.

Next: Poncedeleon Moving Up Cardinals' Starting Depth Chart

With the Cardinals currently employing an eight-man bullpen, with all of those relievers having just had a full day of rest, Tuivailala’s odds of getting into the game on Thursday night don’t seem exceptionally strong. But if starter Adam Wainwright gets knocked out early, perhaps Matheny would insert Tuivailala to avoid straining the rest of his bullpen for their weekend series against the Reds.

Home/St. Louis Cardinals