St. Louis Cardinals official Opening Day roster leaves more questions unanswered

The St. Louis Cardinals announced their official 26-man roster for Opening Day on Sunday morning.

Victor Scott II earned his way onto the Opening Day lineup.

Several fans got their wish with Victor Scott II getting the call up to the majors. He'll be the team's primary center fielder, according to various reports. Also, Matthew Liberatore will be the team's fifth starter to begin the season, with Steven Matz being relegated to relief duties. This has been a wish for many fans since Liberatore was acquired for outfielder Randy Arozarena five years ago.

The Cardinals' full roster includes 13 pitchers, two catchers, six infielders, four outfielders, and one utility man, though several players can play multiple positions. Brendan Donovan can play virtually anywhere on the diamond, and Alec Burleson could feasibly play in the corner outfield to provide rest for Jordan Walker or Lars Nootbaar.

Starting pitcher Michael McGreevy will start the year in Memphis.

This was the roster move that probably frustrated fans the most. Michael McGreevy had an excellent spring. He threw 16.2 innings while striking out 12 and posting a 1.08 ERA. No other pitcher had a stronger spring than McGreevy did. He was placed in Memphis to start the year primarily for depth at the position. McGreevy will be the first name called upon should an injury arise at the major-league level. That's wholly possible with Sonny Gray and Andre Pallante showing dips in velocity and Steven Matz having a track record of getting hurt.

It's tough to see the team's most MLB-ready starter being placed in the minors to start the year, but McGreevy will see plenty of time in the majors this year. Relievers Kyle Leahy and Chris Roycroft, who both had strong springs, will start in Memphis this year, too.

Michael Siani will be the team's fourth outfielder.

Another questionable decision!

Both Michael Siani and Victor Scott II are defense-first center fielders. Siani's inclusion on the 26-man roster is redundant outside of him being a pinch runner late in games, being an substitute for an injury to an outfielder (something Brendan Donovan could have been), and serving as a defensive replacement for Jordan Walker. This feels like a roster spot that could have been used on a backup shortstop.

Speaking of backup shortstops...

The Cardinals don't have a true backup shortstop behind Masyn Winn heading into 2025.

The demotions of infielders Jose Fermin, who was reportedly given a spot just a couple of days ago, and Jose Barrero leave the Cardinals without a true backup shortstop to Masyn Winn. Winn could feasibly play 162 games in a year heading into his second full season, but he had back troubles early last year, and he missed some spring games this year due to wrist soreness. Do we really expect Winn to log a full complement of games?

This leaves Brendan Donovan as the team's emergency shortstop. Donovan, who hasn't logged an inning at shortstop during spring and wasn't in the plans to fill this role at the beginning of the offseason, hasn't played shortstop since 2023, and he played only nine innings there that year. He's played a total of eight games at short for his career. He could find himself playing more than eight games just this year.

Matthew Liberatore gets the final rotation spot, and Steven Matz goes to the bullpen.

In an effort to expedite the youth movement, the Cardinals opted for a rotation that includes Sonny Gray, Erick Fedde, Miles Mikolas, Andre Pallante, and Matthew Liberatore to start the year. By April 16th, this rotation will expand to six pitchers, including Steven Matz. For the time being, Matz will be used as a long reliever.

This gives Liberatore, who is still only 25, a shot at being a starting pitcher once again, something he was throughout his time as a prospect. The left-handed pitcher has better splits as a reliever for his career, but having a truly consistent role should benefit Libby. The issue here is that he may not be fully stretched out, as his highest pitch count this spring is only 71 pitches.

Where will Oliver Marmol find enough at bats for Alec Burleson and Nolan Gorman?

With the inclusion of Victor Scott II, several other players had to be shifted around. Lars Nootbaar moves to left field, Brendan Donovan takes over second base, and Nolan Gorman will likely be the team's primary designated hitter, at least to start the year. This boots Alec Burleson, the team's second-best qualified hitter against right-handed pitchers last year, to the bench.

Burleson could supplant Gorman as the primary designated hitter, but then Gorman won't reach the 500 plate appearance mark that John Mozeliak wants him to reach. Jordan Walker could also get the short end of the stick in deference to Burleson in right field most days. However, that lineup would lean heavily left-handed, and Jordan Walker should see at least 500 plate appearances this year to prove his worth.

There are still many questions left after the St. Louis Cardinals released their 26-man roster, but we at least now have a full roster to look at. Opening Day is just around the corner, and that means real baseball will be back. Let's all be grateful for that at least.