Starting pitcher Sonny Gray, one of the first free agents to sign in the offseason back in November, had been appointed as the St. Louis Cardinals’ Opening Day starter last week.
The team placed their faith in him, and that includes fans: they desperately needed starting pitching, and getting Gray was huge.
He had a relatively normal offseason, but fate dictated that a minor hamstring injury is now causing that Opening Day assignment to be in question.
“It’s a mild hamstring strain for Sonny Gray, Mozeliak says to reporters in FL. There is no timetable for Gray’s recovery currently, but his Opening Day start is in question,” Cardinals insider Katie Woo tweeted.
It's a mild hamstring strain for Sonny Gray, Mozeliak says to reporters in FL. There is no timetable for Gray's recovery currently, but his Opening Day start is in question. #STLCards https://t.co/WtKe5f7guX
— Katie Woo (@katiejwoo) March 5, 2024
If Gray doesn’t make it back in time, the Cards could use Miles Mikolas (the most likely alternative) or even newcomer Kyle Gibson for the first start of the season.
In any case, you can say the Cardinals dodged a bullet even though the diagnosis could knock Gray from the roster to open the season.
Among the injuries that can happen to a pitcher, a mild hamstring strain is one of the best-case scenarios: it’s not the elbow, the shoulder, or the knee.
It means he can be back on the roster in a couple of weeks, which means he won’t miss too much time.
There is still an outside chance he gets back in time to make his Opening Day start, but the Cardinals are likely to play things safe.
Gray was one of the best pitchers in the American League last season, with a 2.79 ERA in 184 innings with the Minnesota Twins.
That performance earned him a three-year, $75 million deal with St. Louis.
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