St. Louis Cardinals: Another round of spring cuts made

Teams must cut down their rosters as the regular season draws closer. On Sunday, the St. Louis Cardinals continued that process.

The Cardinals announced that they have optioned pitchers Seth Elledge and Angel Rodon, along with catchers Ali Sanchez and Ivan Herrera, to minor league camp. Additionally, the team announced they have re-assigned infielders Delvin Perez and Evan Mendoza, pitcher Roel Ramirez and outfielders Connor Capel and Scott Hurst to minor-league camp.

All of these moves are procedural and come as expected. The most difficult roster decisions, of course, will come in the days before Opening Day, where the Cardinals will have to determine who makes the pitching staff, who stays in the outfield and on other parts of the roster. It will be a busy time for president of baseball operations John Mozeliak and his staff, who are increasingly optimistic about their outlook this season despite some early question marks.

Among the most notable moves to minor-league camp include Delvin Perez. He entered spring training understanding it was his most important year yet, something the organization communicated to him publicly and privately, and started the spring off hot and has the team hopeful their former first-round pick will eventually fulfill his draft status.

Ali Sanchez was acquired this offseason to provide organizational depth, but was surpassed on the depth chart by Dennis Ortega. While Sanchez offers intriguing tools, it is unlikely he makes much – if any – impact at the major-league level.

There will be more cuts coming in the near future, but rosters continuing to shrink is the clearest sign yet that Opening Day is right around the corner. I think I can speak for everyone when I say that it’s about time.