3 Cardinals at risk of losing their spot on the roster as team gets healthier

The Cardinals have been playing a bit shorthanded as of late on the position player side of things, which has actually allowed the club to see some new faces produce in meaningful ways. But now that the roster is getting healthier, that is going to force the Cardinals to make some tough decisions.

Over the next few days and weeks, the Cardinals expect to get OF Lars Nootbaar, OF Nathan Church, and INF Ramon Urias all back from the injured list, which will force St. Louis to make some calls on players who recently were added to the roster, or floundering position players who have been getting runway.

Here's a quick look at who some of those likely roster cuts will be as the Cardinals get some of their reinforcements back.

UTL Thomas Saggese

Probably the clearest move for them to make, the Cardinals already optioned Thomas Saggese to Triple-A earlier this year but had to recall him just 24 hours later due to Ramon Urias landing on the injured list.

Once Lars Nootbaar returns this weekend, I fully expect Saggese to be the first player to be sent down to Memphis. It's been a rough year for Saggese, as the 24-year-old is slashing just .167/.231/.217 in 78 plate appearances. The Cardinals still like Saggese and see him as someone who can become a nice utility player for them, but he's unlikely to figure things out by mostly riding the bench in St. Louis.

CF Victor Scott II

This is where decisions get tougher, but at some point, production has to matter when it comes to the center field position, and when Nathan Church returns from the injured list, it may finally be time for Victor Scott II to take a trip to Memphis as well.

Scott, like Saggese, has been going through it at the plate, and this has been a year-long issue now. Scott is currently slashing .193/.258/.262 with six extra base hits and seven stolen bases in 169 plate appearances. He just doesn't get on base enough to use his speed, as he's virtually an automatic out at the plate right now. Scott's defense also isn't quite as crisp as it was last year, so they aren't exactly getting a world burner defensively either. Church, on the other hand, presents the Cardinals with more offense and very good defense as well.

Scott turned 25 before the season, so there is still time for him to figure things out, but it is getting hard to believe that he can do it at the Major League level without an extended trip to Triple-A to work through his issues. And if the Cardinals are back to full health, there are just too many other interesting names who are producing to allow Scott to flounder while they head to Memphis instead.

One of OF Nelson Velazquez, UTL Bryan Torres, or UTL Jose Fermin

Barring a more significant move that I'll map out in a moment, once Ramon Urias returns following Nootbaar's and Church's reappearances, the Cardinals are going to have to make a difficult decision with one of their other position players.

Starting with Jose Fermin, the 27-year-old only has an 81 wRC+ on the season and isn't wowing anyone, but he does fit the mold of a guy who can be the 26th man on the roster and play anywhere on the field without requiring consistent playing time. If the Cardinals are concerned about the amount of playing time that would be available to those other names if they stayed, keeping him makes a lot of sense. Plus, they would have to designate him for an assignment if they optioned Fermin.

Now, both Nelson Velazquez and Bryan Torres have produced far more than Fermin in their small sample sizes, and the pair together actually fills both roles that Fermin currently provides them. Velazquez is a right-handed presence off the bench late in games that can start against left-handed pitching, and Torres can play anywhere on the field as well. So, if the Cardinals want to keep their best roster on the field and they don't want to lose Velazquez, Fermin may get the cut.

Speaking of Velazquez, he has been awesome in his super small sample size so far and provides the Cardinals with more "oomph" in the lineup and off their bench than what they've had most of the season. Plus, when Urias returns, he can fill that right-handed infielder role that Fermin currently does while Velazquez is the corner outfielder/DH version of that.

Still, if Velazquez flounders over the next few weeks, he could be the one to go, or if Fermin produces well or the Cardinals don't want to risk losing him, Torres could be optioned as well.

Now, the Cardinals could hold onto all three of them; it would just require a significant decision that I'm not sure they are ready to make.

3B Nolan Gorman

Despite hitting a home run on Tuesday night, Nolan Gorman is still having the worst offensive season of his career thus far, a trend that is now three seasons running.

Gorman's power has been virtually zapped from his game compared to where it was when he first debuted. He's still striking out at a high clip, and the quality of his contact just isn't there consistently enough. At some point, he's got to produce to stay, and he's about to hit 1,800 Major League plate appearances with little to show for it.

I think they'll give him more time, but Gorman does still have options remaining, so they could send him to Memphis if they desire. We'll see if they get that aggressive, as the next few weeks will likely play a major role in determining his fate.

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