The St. Louis Cardinals made four major trades this past offseason, sending Sonny Gray, Willson Contreras, Brendan Donovan and Nolan Arenado to contending teams.
In exchange, they brought back several pitching prospects to strengthen their minor league depth. Now, they are in much better shape than they have been in the past several years, as pitching was at a premium in their farm system.
One of the pitchers they brought back in the Gray trade was right-hander Richard Fitts, who had been in the Boston Red Sox’s system. He narrowly missed out on a spot in the Cardinals’ opening day starting rotation. However, the Cardinals were dealt a tough blow to their depth on Monday.
According to Jeff Jones of the Belleville News Democrat, the Cardinals will be without Fitts for a little while.
“Cardinals say Richard Fitts is going on the IL at Memphis with a lat strain,” Jones posted on X. “Obviously a blow to their pitching depth.”
St. Louis Cardinals’ Richard Fitts Goes Down with Lat Injury
This is a big blow for the Cardinals in terms of their starting pitching depth. After the offseason moves they made, they are still in much better shape than they have been in several years, but it seems that pitching is always at a premium, and that the old saying of never having enough of it is true once again.
Fitts pitched 4 2/3 innings and allowed two runs in his final start of spring training back in March. He would be an ideal candidate to fill a rotation spot in the major leagues in the event of an injury.
The Cardinals also haven’t been getting much production out of starters Andre Pallante and Kyle Leahy, so he would have been a good candidate to be called up and placed in the rotation.
However, that is not possible, at least for now. There is no clear timetable on a potential recovery, but the Cardinals are going to be without him for quite some time.
The Cardinals have pitched to a 5.10 ERA in their first 15 games of the season, so there is cause for concern with their starting rotation, and that could ultimately be what defines their 2026 season.
They can always stockpile more arms in the upcoming draft this summer, but there is a lot that still needs to be worked out for St. Louis, so it will be interesting to see what their next steps are.
What’s Next for St. Louis
Unfortunately for the Cardinals, since they are not looking to contend this season, this won’t be as simple as sending a starter down to the minors and signing a free agent or even making a trade to acquire a starter or two.
That isn’t what the 2026 season is going to be about for St. Louis. Instead, they will likely have to just roll with the punches and go with what they have for now. They can add more prospects too if they sell at the trade deadline, assuming they are out of contention by then.
St. Louis Cardinals Lose Promising Pitcher to Lat Injury