Injury updates on the myriad of Cardinals who are on the mend

As Sonny Gray made his much-anticipated debut in a Cardinals uniform on Tuesday night, we thought it'd be nice to catch up on other mending St. Louis Cardinals.

CF. There is some news on centerfield for the Cardinals. As Jeff Jones reported late Monday night newly anointed CF Tommy Edman has been cleared for baseball activities and should expect a build-up of early to mid-February-like exposure and workouts. So he still has some more time before he makes his season debut with the Birds. Dylan Carlson on the other hand has not been cleared for baseball activities as he is still recovering from this March 25th collision with RF Jordan Walker. The latest update is that he has been recommended to continue shoulder strengthening exercises. He'll be reevaluated in a few weeks.

In the meantime, another CF candidate, Lars Nootbaar, is in Springfield with the AA Cardinals team on Tuesday to get some more reps and stay closer to St. Louis as he could be activated by the weekend. Victor Scott II will continue to get reps and take advantage of his time here in St. Louis. As he should.

Pitching

Keynan Middleton (Right Forearm Strain)
Middleton was shut down in late spring and hasn't resumed throwing just yet. The optimism has started to teeter on whether he can make a mid-April debut as he is still recovering from an April 6th PRP injection. He could begin throwing by the 13th, but with building back up and rehab assignments the reality of the 25th-30th should be top of mind. The Cardinals signed Middleton to an FA contract this past off-season and would love to see some of their past free-agent RP contract woes come to an end

Riley O'Brien (Right Forearm Strain)
I wouldn't expect to see O'Biren until May as he is still shut down from the April 1st MRI that did not find any structural damage but still reverberated that caution was best at this time. O'Brien made the Opening Day roster and one appearance against the Dodgers but experienced pain the next day.

Drew Rom (Left Shoulder)
Rom as of last reports was playing catch but has not faced batters since being placed on the Injury list during spring training. This is a good sign though as he looks to start some type of rehab assignment in the not-so-distant future.

And...Matt Carpenter (oblique)

I don't know if Carpenter will find the IL often or not this year, and I hope not, but we'll keep this section for him. Carpenter's bat, when healthy, even at this stage of his career is a lethal weapon. The 38-year-old had a hot spring and still looked really comfortable at the plate in LA. Unfortunately for Carpenter, he felt the pain in his right oblique and opted to play it safe. Respectfully the right call this early in the year. Carp can also provide great leadership in the clubhouse, so not all is lost.

As we await the injured Cardinals to flock back home, Cardinal fans will hope that no other injuries mount and their team can find themselves fully healthy to take on a challenging and wide-open NL Central. Find more great work and Cardinals coverage at RedbirdRants.com