4 deserving Cardinals players who'll be squeezed off the Opening Day roster

Jose Fermin

The Cardinals went out and signed former San Francisco Giant Brandon Crawford to be their backup shortstop a few weeks ago, but with how Jose Fermin is playing this camp, I wonder if they would go back and undo that decision.

Crawford won't get much playing time for the Cardinals, but they did want to bring someone in to back up Winn with Edman still being on the mend and their desire to have him focus on center field this year. Had the Cardinals waited to sign a shortstop, Crawford would've been picked up by another club, so they didn't really have time to "wait and see".

Still, Fermin has been really impressive so far, slashing .310/.408/.524 with 2 home runs and 4 RBI in his 42 at-bats. Again, I don't really care about the camp stats, but when it comes to a backup shortstop role, Fermin has done a lot to prove he should get a shot in that role, but I doubt he will do so anytime soon.

Should Crawford really struggle during the year, the Cardinals could decide to cut bait and look to Fermin instead, but for now, he's likely going to remain in Memphis for most of the year. Fermin did get a small sample size in St. Louis in 2023 to grab their attention but only mustered a .594 OPS in those 51 at-bats.

Fermin is just 24 years old, so perhaps he's taking the necessary steps forward to earn a backup role in the future. For now, even with his impressive camp, he'll be left off that Opening Day roster.