Cardinals solidify Opening Day bullpen after final arm is optioned to Memphis

Few decisions remain regarding the St. Louis Cardinals' Opening Day roster at this point, as the club solidified its bullpen mix on Saturday to begin the year.

The club announced that right-handed pitcher Gordon Graceffo, who spent much of spring training with Team Italy for the World Baseball Classic, was the final arm optioned to Triple-A Memphis, finalizing their official bullpen mix as they get ready to head north to St. Louis for Opening Day.

The Cardinals optioned Gordon Graceffo to Triple-A Memphis, soldifying their Opening Day bullpen

With Graceffo beginning the year in Memphis, the Cardinals' Opening Day bullpen mix will be the following eight arms: RHP Matt Svanson, RHP Riley O'Brien, LHP JoJo Romero, RHP Ryan Stanek, LHP Justin Bruihl, RHP George Soriano, RHP Matt Pushard, and RHP Chris Roycroft.

Earlier this week, the Cardinals optioned both RHP Richard Fitts and RHP Scott Blewett to Triple-A Memphis, seemingly bringing the competition for their final bullpen spot down to three arms: Pushard, Roycroft, and Graceffo.

Pushard, who the Cardinals selected in the Rule 5 draft this offseason, cannot be optioned to Triple-A Memphis without being offered back up to the Miami Marlins, so it felt likely that he could make the Opening Day roster. Roycroft has been in camp all spring and has looked really confident on the mound, so it's not a surprise to see him get the nod for Opening Day.

Now, we should be quick to note that Roycroft is the only arm in the Cardinals' current bullpen who can be optioned to Memphis (aside from Svanson, who we all expect to stay on the roster all season), so there's a good chance he is the first arm optioned to Memphis early in the year to bring a fresh arm up, like Graceffo. I fully expect Graceffo to see plenty of opportunities in St. Louis this year, among other arms who should get a shot as well.

I don't think the Cardinals will have a long leash with Pushard if he struggles, and arms like Bruihl and Soriano could lose their spots if things don't go well. But for now, Roycroft and Pushard made the cut, and Graceffo will be ready to come up and contribute when his name is called upon.