The St. Louis Cardinals may not be considered strong playoff contenders this season, but they do have some of the most intense roster competitions happening during spring training.
As a relatively young squad, the Cardinals are trying to determine the right combination for their pitching staff after a busy offseason that brought significant changes. Many new players—several of whom previously had difficulty establishing themselves with other teams—are now aiming to secure a spot on the opening day roster.
Among those names: left-hander, who the Cardinals acquired in a January trade with the Cleveland Guardians. Bruihl had just been waived, so St. Louis got aggressive and gave Cleveland cash considerations to jump the line on the waiver wire.
Is Bruihl going to miss roster cutdown?
If Bruihl does not make the Cardinals’ opening day roster, he’ll need to be waived once again, which would create a strong possibility of St. Louis losing him.
However, on Thursday, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat predicted that Bruihl would indeed be cut, thanks to the strong spring thus far from fellow left-hander Packy Naughton.
“This is a group with four concrete spots – (Riley) O’Brien, (JoJo) Romero, (Ryne) Stanek, (Matt) Svanson – and a fifth that will be a second lefty,” Jones explained.
“It would be somewhat strange to risk losing Justin Bruihl, who has been perfectly adequate, on waivers, but Naughton is one of the feel-good stories of camp, so there’s a thought to picking the upside. Nick Raquet is also a candidate in that derby, as is Brycen Mautz in a longer-use, more bulk innings type of role.”
Bruihl, 28, appeared in 15 games last season for the American League champion Toronto Blue Jays. His 5.27 ERA in 13 2/3 innings was just above his career average of 4.72 in five seasons. He’s also pitched for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Colorado Rockies, and Pittsburgh Pirates.
Every spring training outing matters for the likes of Bruihl, Naughton, Raquet, and Mautz. To some extent, it’s an advantage for Bruihl to be out of options, but after allowing three earned runs in his first 2 2/3 innings, he’ll need to quickly right the ship.
