St. Louis Cardinals: Piscotty activated from DL, Bader sent down to AAA

Although the young St. Louis Cardinals’ outfielder was fun to watch, Harrison Bader will have to wait for another opportunity as Stephen Piscotty is back.

Fully recovered from a groin injury, St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Stephen Piscotty will be back in action for tonight’s game in Milwaukee. Sadly, this means young outfield prospect, Harrison Bader, a player fans were wanting to be called up for months, will go back to triple-A Memphis.

Showing hustle and bringing a Tommy Pham-like energy burst, Bader went 6-21 (.286) with two doubles, but nine strikeouts during his six games for the St. Louis Cardinals. In those six games, the team went 4-2 while averaging exactly three runs per game.

Even though the team’s offensive production was slow at times, Bader was the exact opposite as he ran out multiple ground balls for infield hits. Another highlight came in his second game, getting a double off of a check swing sailing just over former Cardinal Mark Reynolds‘ outstretched glove.

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Since there was little chance Bader would get to see regular at-bats, he goes to Memphis where he has excelled.

In ninety-seven games, the former 3rd-round pick had a triple slash line of .297/.354/.517 and slugged nineteen home runs with a wRC+ of 122.

Interestingly, during his short run on the squad, Bader ranks 5th out of all Cardinals players in BsR.

The four players above Bader are Greg Garcia, Randal Grichuk, Dexter Fowler, and Tommy Pham.

As for Piscotty, he has struggled in his third major league season. Batting a measly .236 and slugging .371, the right fielder will probably be batting in the lower part of the order to start things off. Then again, Mike Matheny does love batting catcher Yadier Molina fifth.

A huge question is what will be the trio of outfielders starting tonight. Since a return from the disabled list fellow outfield Randal Grichuk has been putting up numbers. In ten games, the strikeout prone Grichuk is hitting .342 with 4 home runs.

Tommy Pham has been the best offensive weapon for the team since his May call-up. Dexter Fowler, while his 2017 season has not met expectations, is getting paid too much money to chew bubble gum on the bench.

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These decisions are tough, but ultimately Randal Grichuk should be the fourth outfielder. Providing power is a plus, but his .342 average since returning isn’t sustainable. An outfield of Pham, Fowler, and Piscotty should be the decision that manager Mike Matheny makes.