Cardinals' latest roster move screams of lineup complications moving forward

With the return of St. Louis Cardinals catcher Ivan Herrera becoming imminent this week, all eyes were on how the club would welcome him back onto the roster. Would they option one of their catchers and have him jump right back into his regular duties behind the plate? Or would they get creative and carry three catchers on the roster?

They chose the latter.

Per MLB's official transactions page (first noticed by our own Scott Plaza and then reported by Jeff Jones), the Cardinals are optioning DH Luken Baker to Memphis today in anticipation of activating Herrera for the beginning of their series against the Washington Nationals on Friday.

The Cardinals optioning Luken Baker means that Ivan Herrera will be seeing an increase in opportunities at the DH spot, for now.

While Baker's stats may seem underwhelming on the surface (posting a .690 OPS in 34 at-bats), he's been great at the main role he fills on the club, posting a .848 OPS against lefties, the best mark on the team among hitters who've had at least 20 opportunities.

Baker's role was extremely limited, though, as he only started against left-handed pitching and, until Wednesday's pinch-hit opportunity against the Pirates, was rarely utilized off the bench late in games.

On the flip side, Herrera is returning from his knee injury, and there has been concern as to how much his knee can handle early on, especially when it comes to catching duties. Even before Herrera went down with his injury, the Cardinals were having a difficult time balancing how often he should play behind the plate with the deficiency his arm presents.

Choosing to option Baker, rather than Pedro Pages or Yohel Pozo, gives the Cardinals an added layer of flexibility compared to what Baker provides at the moment. First, the Cardinals can now use Herrera as a DH more often, especially against left-handed pitching. Herrera's bat was incredible to start the year, posting .381/.458/1.048 with four home runs and 11 RBI in 21 at-bats.

The Cardinals can be patient with getting Herrera behind the plate physically, as well as continue to work with him on developing better arm strength. Once Herrera's knee is fully ready to go, though, they need to commit to him behind the plate again.

Why? Well the more time Herrera spends at designated hitter, the fewer plate appearances that'll be available for Alec Burleson and Nolan Gorman. Burleson has been swinging a hot bat as of late, and the Cardinals want to continue to see Gorman work through his struggles offensively. It also limits the chances the Cardinals have to get Willson Contreras, Nolan Arenado, and other veterans off their feet while staying in the lineup.

The Cardinals clearly value Pages' defense behind the plate, and Pozo has been hyper-productive offensively since he was added to the roster, so I expect the Cardinals to be patient with working Herrera in. But once he is ready, I do think it will make sense to turn back to Baker and demote one of those catchers, unless Pozo continues to hit at a high rate.