5 surprises on St. Louis Cardinals 2022 Opening Day roster
The St. Louis Cardinals Opening Day roster for 2022 included a few surprises.
St. Louis Cardinals fans got their first look at the team’s 2022 Opening Day roster. They got a few surprises out of it as well.
With 15 pitchers and 13 batters, there were bound to be a few headscratchers on the 28-man roster. Until May 2, fans will enjoy a 28-man roster, 29 on days when there is a doubleheader, to get through the first month of the season after a shortened spring training.
On May 2, the roster size will go back to 26, with 27 on days where there will be a doubleheader. Some doubleheaders are already sprinkled throughout the season due to the rescheduling of some games due to the lockout.
More pitching is included because the club is wanting to make sure to not overuse anyone. Also, new manager Oliver Marmol is expected to be big on playing matchups. The availability of more pitchers early will give him the opportunity. Also, Jack Flaherty and Alex Reyes on the injured list means Marmol and pitching coach Mike Maddux will need to find the right mix to fill in for them. It’s interesting to see the club not push to bring up prized prospect Matthew Liberatore to fill this need just yet. Luckily, the organization can make sure he is ready to go before rushing him.
Juan Yepez and Nolan Gorman missed out on roster spots due to a need to get some plate appearances at the minor league level after struggling during Spring Training. Brendan Donovan had an excellent Spring Training but missed out on a spot as well to get more plate appearances. After his performance in 2021, Eduardo Sosa was the obvious selection for the bench and to back up the infield.
It’s great to see Cardinals legend Lars Nootbaar get a spot on the roster. He earned it with the way he ended the 2021 season combined with how well he did in the Arizona Fall League and Spring Training.
Let’s take a look at some of the surprises on the roster.
Andre Pallante
Pallante was the Cardinals’ fourth-round pick in the 2019 MLB Amateur Draft. The 23-year-old right-hander was a non-roster invitee this spring and obviously impressed.
During Spring Training, he threw in three games, finishing one with a save. In 13 batters faced, he gave up only one hit, one walk, and struck out four. After last season’s woes, that one walk is pretty epic. Pallante also appeared in the Arizona Fall League, appearing in seven games, starting four. He was 1-1, going 21 innings and striking out 22.
Pallante has had an impressive stretch since the fall of 2021. He was rewarded for that with this roster spot. He appears to be very effective so it will be interesting to see if he remains with the Cardinals after May 2.
Pallante definitely fits into Marmol’s plans for matchups. He’s had some time as a starter and worked mostly as a reliever this spring. We will most likely see him pitch an inning or two per outing but it wouldn’t be out of the question to see him do a piggy-back start if needed.
It should be an exciting month for Pallante.
Aaron Brooks
Brooks was signed by the Cardinals on Jan. 27 after the lockout ended. He was added to the 40-man roster on March 26 after Alex Reyes was placed on the 60-day injured list. He has spent time with the Kansas City Royals, Oakland A’s, and the Baltimore Orioles, but hasn’t pitched since 2019.
During his spring with the Cardinals, he’s pitched seven innings over three games. He gave up three earned runs, including one home run. He did strike out 10 in 27 batters faced. For his career, he is 9-13 in 47 games with 28 games started. He threw 170.2 innings and struck out 123 batters.
While there has been a two-year gap in playing time for Brooks, the 32-year-old right-hander has impressed the right people. Brooks will definitely fit into Marmol’s plans for match-ups. He will be another one to watch once the roster is reduced to 26 players. The Cardinals will definitely make use of him throwing strikes and see if it leads to an extended stay with St. Louis.
Corey Dickerson
It was wild to see the Cardinals actually seek help from outside the organization. But the team is embarking on a season of high expectations and the club will need all the help they can get.
Dickerson was signed to a one-year deal worth $5 million with the intent to be a designated hitter as well as be a backup outfielder. Dickerson, a lefty bat, will DH against right-handed bats. This spring he’s hit .455/.538/.636 and an OPS of 1.175. He has two walks, two doubles, and two RBI in five games.
For his career, Dickerson has hit .283/.327/.488 with an OPS of .815. He has 128 home runs in his nine-season career along with 213 doubles, 35 triples, and 416 RBI.
Dickerson will mostly be a DH, but he can help in the outfield. While the club has Harrison Bader, Tyler O’Neill, and Dylan Carlson, they have Nootbaar and Dickerson available to help. This will likely help big time in Marmol’s match-up usage.
For several seasons, the Cardinals haven’t had the most reliable depth off the bench. The signing of Dickerson gives them significant depth along with Nootbaar.
Jake Woodford
The necessity of having Woodford on the roster is more surprising than anything. With Jack Flaherty beginning the 2022 season on the 10-day injured list, it is very necessary.
The Cardinals were hopeful their pitching staff would return to Spring Training healthy and ready to go. Flaherty had lingering issues he returned to camp with. He received a platelet-rich plasma injection and the club announced it would wait a couple of weeks to see how his body responded. Once they had that information, they would know how to proceed.
While the club waits, Flaherty has been placed on the 10-day injured list and the club will have to proceed with who they have.
Adam Wainwright, Miles Mikolas, Steven Matz, and Dakota Hudson are the club’s penciled-in starters. For their fifth starter, it’s believed the club could return to using an opener. This would include Woodford and pairing him with another pitcher to piggyback the start. Pairings could involve Drew VerHagen, Nick Wittgren, Brooks, or Pallante. Marmol should have a few options to consider.
Albert Pujols
The most pleasant of surprises for nostalgic Cardinals fans.
When he left the Cardinals after the 2011 season, fans didn’t think this was possible. But time heals all wounds and the Cards and Pujols were able to reunite for what is set to be his final season as a major league baseball player.
Pujols’ ability to “return home” has tremendous meaning as it is not only his final season in the place where it all began, but he will be joining his best friend in future Hall of Fame catcher, Yadier Molina, for his final season. He’s also joining his longtime friend Adam Wainwright as well. It’s unclear if this will be his final season.
While Pujols is interested in winning another championship with the Cardinals, there are a tremendous number of records he could approach in a setting where it will be celebrated in epic fashion.
Pujols is 21 home runs from joining the 700 home run club. Alex Rodriguez has 696 home runs. It will take Pujols 18 homers to pass him. At 14th on the all-time list, he could make his way up the charts in 2022. Pujols could approach Nap Lajoie, Eddie Murray, Willie Mays, Eddie Collins, and Paul Molitor.
To start 2022, Pujols has 5,923 total bases. It’s interesting to note that if Pujols gets 210 bases, he would reach 6,133 which would make him one behind Stan Musial at 6,134. Could you imagine the reaction from Cardinals fans at Busch Stadium if he approaches this mark? Unreal.
Pujols has 1,347 extra bases to start 2022. He is fifth behind Babe Ruth at 1,356, Musial at 1,377, Bonds at 1,440, and Aaron at 1,477.
No matter what, it will be nice to see Pujols back in a Cardinals uniform. Here’s hoping for a season to remember.