The St. Louis Cardinals have been fighting to stay in the NL wild card race, but they’ve struggled offensively in August without their star third baseman, Nolan Arenado. The 34-year-old has been on the injured list since August 1 due to shoulder irritation, which made it too painful for him to continue playing every day.
Arenado was officially diagnosed with a right shoulder strain and has been rehabbing at the team’s spring training facility in Florida, working to ramp up his baseball activities ahead of a return to the field.
The shoulder issue may have played a role in his dip in production this season, as he’s posted a career-low .235 batting average and .660 OPS over 96 games.
Nolan Arenado Injury Update
Arenado announced that he hopes to begin swinging by Friday and start a throwing program next week. He also offered a message regarding his pain via The Athletic’s Katie Woo: “Pain is going down, definitely getting there.”
Arenado has made it clear that he intends to return to the big-league roster before the season ends.
Cardinals Facing Difficult Season-Ending Decision
As Arenado works toward returning to the active roster, the Cardinals face a tough decision on whether to rush him back into action. With the team currently five games behind in the playoff race and holding an 11–18 record in the second half of the season, it might be wiser for the Cardinals to play it safe. Pushing Arenado too soon could risk further injury, especially with playoff hopes fading. Taking a cautious approach could be the smarter move to ensure he’s fully healthy for next season.
Arenado has had an exceptional 13-year career, collecting eight All-Star selections, ten Gold Glove Awards, and five Silver Slugger Awards across stints with the Colorado Rockies and Cardinals. His peak came from 2015–18, when he led the National League in home runs in three of four seasons and led all of MLB in RBIs in back-to-back years (2015–16).
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