Which Cardinals are at risk of losing their roster spots when injured players return?

When Lars Nootbaar returns, Pedro Pages is the only player who should expect to lose his roster spot

I promise there will be other names at risk of losing their roster spot after this, but in all honesty, the return of Contreras, Herrera, and Nootbaar, all seem to impact the same three roster spots, and it's the return of Tommy Edman that could really shake things up.

According to MLB.com's John Denton, Nootbaar is still a step away from progressing to live batting practice, and once he's able to get through that, he could see a rehab assignment to follow.

Nootbaar is dealing with an oblique injury that has kept him out since late May, and considering the myriad of injuries that he has dealt with over the past few seasons, I don't think the Cardinals' will change their turn with Nootbaar's center field usage. Because of this, Nootbaar should be treated as a corner outfielder only when it comes to roster construction, limiting how the Cardinals can structure their roster upon his return.

Brendan Donovan and Alec Burleson are obviously safe when it comes to playing time and their roster spot. The Cardinals' other two outfielders, Michael Siani and Dylan Carlson, are the only two players on the roster currently who can play center field. So neither of them is going to be at risk of being sent down either.

Now we get to the back end of the roster, and there are just three spots remaining who could lose their spot - Pages, Matt Carpenter, and Brandon Crawford. We know how the Cardinals feel about the latter two being on their roster, so, Pages it is.

Sure, another injury could happen between now and when Nootbaar returns that changes this, but assuming Contreras and Herrera return before Nootbaar does, it's a given that Pages will be the one to lose his roster spot, Herrera will return to being the primary backup catcher with less frequent DH opportunities, and the Cardinals lineup will be close to full strength.

Now, the next player on this list has been out the whole season so far, and when he returns to the roster, we are going to see how the Cardinals truly feel about a former top prospect of theirs.