St. Louis Cardinals’ Dakota Hudson, Juan Yepez land on IL

More injury news for the St. Louis Cardinals as RHP Dakota Hudson and rookie standout Juan Yepez hit the IL on Saturday ahead of the All-Star break.

Disappointing news for the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday, as both Dakota Hudson and rookie slugger Juan Yepez land on the injured list for the club. In corresponding moves, the club has recalled Zack Thompson and Lars Nootbaar from AAA Memphis.

Hudson hits the 15-day IL with a neck strain, while Juan Yepez is dealing with a right forearm strain and will be on the 10-day IL. With the All-Star break next week, both players may not end up missing a lot of game time, but regardless, any time missed is huge considering all the injuries the club has been facing.

Hudson has been disappointing this season, finishing the 1st half with a 6-6 record and 4.10 ERA. The 27 year old is in his first full season back from Tommy John surgery, and the club just not been able to get consistent performances out of him. Hudson went 6.2 innings against the Los Angeles Dodgers, looking like he had finally put it all together before giving up a 2-run homer to Gavin Lux in the 7th inning to give up 4 runs on the day.

Yepez has been a bright spot for the club ever since being called up in May. In 62 games so far, he has slashed .254/.298/.459 with 11 HR and 27 RBI for the Cardinals. As the club has battled injuries to their outfield and lack of production from other DH options, Yepez has filled holes as needed and provided an offensive spark for the club.

The club just saw the return of Tyler O’Neill to the lineup on Friday, but really needs to get back to health after the All-Star break. The injury to Hudson specifically should create some urgency in the front office to make a move for starting pitching.