Cardinals News: St. Louis options Paul DeJong to Triple-A

According to reporting from The Athletic’s Katie Woo, the St. Louis Cardinals have optioned Paul DeJong to AAA Memphis.

For several weeks, the St. Louis Cardinals have been waiting to see some improvements from shortstop Paul DeJong. DeJong has started the season hitting .130/.209/.208 with a WOBA of .198 and a +30 wRC.  Defensively, he has five defensive runs saved.

DeJong is signed to a six-year contract worth $26 million that goes through 2023 with team options for 2024 and 2025. He does have three minor league options.

According to Woo, Tommy Edman is expected to fill in as the team’s shortstop. Edman has been the team’s second baseman. Edman is hitting .292/.393/.458 with a +152 wRC. Edman also has seven defensive runs saved at second base.

Edmundo Sosa was playing shortstop for the Springfield Cardinals today.

Woo reported that President of baseball operations John Mozeliak will speak with the media at 3:15 p.m. CT Tuesday. He will be discussing the DeJong demotion and why the Cardinals made such a move while going into the team’s reasoning for promoting Kramer Robertson over top prospect Nolan Gorman, though one reason is believed to be Gorman’s high strikeout rate.

In addition to Sosa returning to the club soon, Brendan Donovan is an infielder who will likely see sometime at second base. It’s unclear how the club will use Robertson or if he will merely be a depth piece. It also remains unclear when Gorman will be promoted, but with DeJong now in the minors and a gaping hole remaining at second base, which is where he plays, it doesn’t figure to be long until Gorman debuts in the majors.

For now, his wait continues. The Cardinals, meanwhile, finally pulled the plug on the Paul DeJong experiment — and it was a long time coming.