5 Cardinals who could be off the roster by the end of May

After a sub-par April, the St. Louis Cardinals must turn it around. The return of players like Keynan Middleton, Dylan Carlson, Matt Carpenter, and Tommy Edman will displace certain players currently on the 26-man roster once they are healthy. Additionally, some players are not performing up to expectations, so they could be designated for assignment.

This will create a squeeze on the roster; certain players will have to leave once the injured players return. Hopefully, these changes in personnel will create an improvement in on-field performance.

These 5 players could be off the roster by the end of May.

Honorable mention: Steven Matz

Steven Matz has not been good this year with a 6.18 ERA and 1.735 WHIP in 27.2 innings. He did not make the cut for this list for two reasons. First, he's injured and likely to go on the IL, and that doesn't count for this exercise. Second, Matz wouldn't be wholly removed from the roster due to his performance. It's most likely he is simply moved to the bullpen.

Michael Siani

Michael Siani has played admirably defensively. When Victor Scott II was in St. Louis, Siani primarily came in as a defensive replacement late in games. Once Scott was demoted, Siani moved to the starting center field position. His defense has remained strong, but his offense has lagged behind.

In 27 games (50 plate appearances), Siani is slashing .171/.277/.220 for an OPS+ of 45. He is 55 percent worse than the average MLB player offensively. That's...terrible. Where Siani has been able to contribute offensively is with his speed and sacrifice bunting. He has 5 sacrifice hits, the most in all of baseball. His 2 stolen bases are tied for 2nd on the team.

Once Dylan Carlson returns, which could be as soon as next week, Siani could be demoted. Carlson will start in center with Lars Nootbaar, Brendan Donovan, and Alec Burleson rounding out the outfield corps. This will likely push Siani off the roster, as Carlson can be the starting center fielder with Nootbaar being the emergency backup.

Siani was originally expected to start the season in AAA, so his demotion won't be much of a surprise. Historically, he has walked at an above-average rate with a decent strikeout rate. Those abilities have continued in the majors, but his normal bat-to-ball skill hasn't translated to the majors.

Siani's demotion isn't due to his lack of performance necessarily; he has filled in admirably defensively for the injured Tommy Edman. However, Carlson's return simply squeezes him out of a spot. Hopefully, he can continue to develop his bat in the minors so he is able to return to the majors next year more ready to go.