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Cardinals can't catch a break as another top pitching prospect has major injury

It seems like every pitching prospect the Cardinals have is dealing with an injury!
ByJosh Jacobs|
Feb 12, 2025; Jupiter, FL, USA; St. Louis Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak takes questions from the media on the day pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training in Jupiter, Florida. Mandatory Credit: Jim Rassol-Imagn Images
Feb 12, 2025; Jupiter, FL, USA; St. Louis Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak takes questions from the media on the day pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training in Jupiter, Florida. Mandatory Credit: Jim Rassol-Imagn Images | Jim Rassol-Imagn Images

The St. Louis Cardinals were reluctant to trade away starting pitching from their Major League roster this offseason, in fear that they would need depth over the course of the 2025 season. While their six starters on their Opening Day roster and Michael McGreevy have remained healthy to start the year, their depth at the minor league levels has been zapped by the injury bug, with Sem Robberse the next in that line.

Robberse, who is on the Cardinals' 40-man roster and was a part of the Cardinals' rotation in Memphis, struggled in his four starts so far this year but represented one of the Cardinals' first options they could turn to if injuries strike their big league rotation. That is no longer the case now, as Robberse is set to undergo season-ending Tommy John surgery, and he'll likely miss part of the 2026 season as well.

Sem Robberse is yet another Cardinals pitching prospect to have a major injury this season

Robberse is just the next in a line of Cardinals pitching prospects who have experienced a significant injury this year, and the second to undergo Tommy John surgery, as Cooper Hjerpe did the same last month. Tink Hence began the year on the minor league 60-day injured list, 2025 draftee Brian Holiday is on the season-ending injured list, and top pitching prospect Quinn Mathews has been out with shoulder issues (although he is set to return soon).

Robberse, who was acquired from the Toronto Blue Jays in the Jordan Hicks trade back at the 2023 trade deadline, has been developing in Memphis for St. Louis for the last few seasons. At just 23, Robberse was one of the youngest pitchers at the Triple-A level when he was acquired by St. Louis, and while he has not been particularly effective there, he was a valuable piece to have as depth over the course of a 162-game season.

While Robberse's ceiling is likely a back of the rotation starter at best long-term, the Cardinals need that kind of depth in their organization with how thin they still are pitching wise. Last year, the Cardinals got fairly lucky with the injury bug, but this year, it has really struck the minor league level hard. The only top arm who remains unharmed to this point has been Tekoah Roby.

As someone who believed the Cardinals should trade Erick Fedde this offseason to capitalize on his trade value, these injuries do not change my opinion on that. The Cardinals, if they were concerned this could happen, could have traded Fedde and then opted to sign someone like Jose Quintana, who signed a one-year, $4 million deal (less than Fedde's $7.5 million this year) and has been excellent this year, posting a 2.65 ERA in six starts. So I don't think those in the media making the argument that the Cardinals were proven "right" by holding their pitching are giving a fair portrayal of what the Cardinals' options truly were.

Hopefully the Cardinals pitching is able to avoid the injury bug the rest of this season, as if it continues to strike, they may fall apart rather quickly.

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