Cardinals catcher Willson Contreras is set to go on the injured list after fracturing his finger, as reported by Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Ivan Herrera is anticipated to take Contreras’s place on the roster starting Sunday. Contreras sustained the injury from a pitch during Saturday’s loss to the Twins, and a definitive timeline for his return remains unclear. Contreras will undergo scans on Monday to better gauge his recovery time.
This setback is particularly disheartening for the Cardinals, as the 32-year-old has been one of their most consistent hitters with a .263/.379/.470 slash line this season. However, Contreras has struggled with injuries throughout the year, including a broken arm suffered in May after St. Louis coaches advised him to adjust his stance for better pitch framing. With just over a month left in the regular season, there’s concern that this injury might prematurely end his 2024 campaign.
Even if Contreras returns before the season concludes, his absence could significantly impact the Cardinals’ slim playoff hopes. The team fell to a 64-65 record on Saturday, sitting below .500 and third in the NL Central, trailing both the Brewers and Cubs. With Milwaukee holding a commanding 10.5-game lead in the division, the Cardinals have shifted their focus to the wild-card race. They are now six games behind the Braves for the final NL wild-card spot and would need to overcome this deficit while surpassing the Cubs, Giants, and Mets.
The team’s struggles this year have largely stemmed from a lackluster offense. Their collective wRC+ of 97 ranks 18th in the majors, down from 13th with a 103 wRC+ last year. Despite improvements in the rotation—reducing their ERA from 5.08 to 4.46—the offense has not matched the performance of key players like Paul Goldschmidt, Nolan Arenado, and Nolan Gorman.
With only a few hitters like Alec Burleson, Masyn Winn, and Brendan Donovan performing above average by wRC+, Contreras’s role as a middle-of-the-order power bat has been crucial. His absence will put additional pressure on Arenado and Lars Nootbaar to step up if the team hopes to keep their playoff hopes alive.
In Contreras’s absence, the Cardinals will rely on young catchers Ivan Herrera and Pedro Pages. Pages, 25, has been a solid backup with a .250/.299/.364 slash line and a strong performance since the All-Star break. Herrera, 24, has shown promise with a .279/.340/.378 slash line and impressive minor league numbers since returning to Triple-A. His performance could be key to filling the gap left by Contreras.