photo: Jose Rondon (Jim Rassol/USA TODAY Sports)
St. Louis Cardinals press release
The St. Louis Cardinals announced a series of roster moves prior to tonight’s (Saturday, May 29) game. They are as follows:
Infielder Max Moroff (left shoulder subluxation) has been placed on the 10-day Injured List, retroactive to May 27, and the contract of infielder José Rondón has been selected from the Memphis (AAA) roster. In addition, the team has recalled right-handed pitcher Junior Fernández from Memphis and optioned right-handed pitcher Johan Oviedo to Memphis. Oviedo will remain with the team on the Taxi Squad.
To make room for Rondón on the team’s 40-player roster, pitcher Miles Mikolas (right forearm) has been transferred to the 60-day Injured List.
Rondón, 27, owns a .201 (54-for-268) career batting mark with 9 HR’s and 24 RBI in 106 games played with San Diego (2016), the White Sox (2018-19) and Baltimore (2019). The Venezuela native was signed as a minor league free agent by the Cardinals in December of 2020.
The right-handed hitting Rondón (pronounced RAHN-dohn) has appeared in 21 games for Memphis this season, batting .235 (20-for-85) while leading the team with his 6 HR’s, 41 total bases & 19 RBI. Rondón, has appeared at all four infield positions, outfield and pitcher (May 3, 2019) during his Major League career. He will wear uniform number 64.
Fernandez, 24, has appeared in two games for the Cardinals this season, most recently on May 25 when he worked a career-high 2.2 scoreless innings of relief against the White Sox. He wears uniform number 44.
Brian Walton’s take
Oviedo/Fernandez
Oviedo stepped back into the no. 6 spot in the rotation Friday night, but was not impressive. The 23-year-old went 4 1/3 innings, allowing three runs, two earned, on six walks and five hits.
Oviedo was just promoted to make Friday’s start with Fernandez going the other way both times. Oviedo remains with the team on the taxi squad as they continue their current road trip.
The reason Fernandez did not have to remain in the minors for the mandatory 10 days is that it can be represented that he replaced an injured player (Moroff) on the active roster, In that case, the time limit is waived.
Rondon/Moroff
The two MLB veteran infielders were signed in the off-season and competed for a reserve job that was given to Edmundo Sosa coming out of spring camp. As the minor league season got underway, Moroff was red hot with Memphis and got the nod to join St. Louis when Paul DeJong was injured.
In six games with St. Louis, Moroff was not effective. The 28-year-old managed just one single in 16 at-bats (.063), drew no walks and struck out 10 times. He last played on Wednesday in Chicago.
Rondon, 27, had been placed on the Temporarily Inactive List at Memphis with the expectation he would return to Venezuela to compete in the Olympic trials (as is Redbirds teammate Matthew Liberatore for the USA). However, those plans have changed with his first promotion to St. Louis.
As noted, Rondon led Memphis with 19 RBI in 21 games but was batting just .235. With Sosa playing well in place of DeJong, Rondon should serve in a reserve role with St. Louis.
Mikolas
In last Saturday’s fourth inning, the veteran right hander left his first start coming off the injured list following a shoulder problem. After imaging and review of a new malady, a sore forearm, by team doctors, Mikolas received a second opinion from Dr. James Andrews. There were no signs of a flexor tear or UCL injury. A small calcification on the flexor tendon was found and a stem cell injection was prescribed.
Mikolas will be re-evaluated in 4-6 weeks with the expectation that he can resume throwing at that time and return to the team at some point in the second half.
Minor league move
Some good news to round out the night. @tpike10 has been picked up by the @Cardinals. His contract is the 6th transferred to an @MLB organization by the RedHawks in 2021.
📰 https://t.co/osn1dx23Uu pic.twitter.com/Vj5ah7OUuf
— Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks (@FMRedHawks) May 28, 2021
The St. Louis Cardinals have purchased the contract of left-handed pitcher Tyler Pike from the Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks of the independent American Association, the latter club announced Thursday, May 27. The 6-foot, 180-pounder will report to the Springfield (Mo.) Cardinals, St. Louis’ Double-A affiliate, per the RedHawks’ release.
The 27-year-old is in his 10th season of professional baseball and was in his third year with the RedHawks. He started 29 games for the club over three years and went 12-8 with a 3.41 ERA in 169 innings. To begin the 2021 season, Pike struck out 16 batters and limited opponents to three earned runs in 12 innings over two starts for Fargo-Moorhead.
As a Florida prep star, Pike was originally selected by the Seattle Mariners as a Competitive Balance selection, 126th overall, in the 2012 draft. He pitched for five seasons in the Mariners organization and reached Double-A briefly in 2015 before he was traded to Atlanta following the 2016 campaign. With the Braves, he spent much of 2017 and 2018 at Double-A before becoming a minor league free agent. Other than in 2018, Pike has exclusively been a starter in his professional career.
It is no secret that the Cardinals minor league pitching has struggled this season so bringing in outside reinforcements seems a good idea. On Friday, Springfield placed starter Alvaro Seijas on the seven-day injured list, the fourth Double-A hurler to go down to injury.
For more
To track the status of the Cardinals’ 40-man roster as well as all players in the system by position and level, check out the Roster Matrix, always free and updated here at The Cardinal Nation. Also included is every player transaction across the full organization all year long.
Exclusively for members of The Cardinal Nation
Now Available – 2021 Cardinals Prospect Guide
Now available, The Cardinal Nation 2021 Prospect Guide is back for a fourth year. It includes over 250 pages of in-depth commentary about the very best St. Louis Cardinals minor leaguers, including dozens of color photos.
https://thecardinalnation.com/order-the-cardinal-nation-2021-prospect-guide-now/
Not yet a member?
Join The Cardinal Nation for the most comprehensive coverage of the St. Louis Cardinals from the majors through the entire minor league system.
Brian Walton can be reached via email at brian@thecardinalnation.com. Follow Brian on Twitter.
© 2021 The Cardinal Nation, thecardinalnation.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.