Cardinals place shortstop Masyn Winn on IL with back spasms, activate Nolan Gorman
The St. Louis Cardinals have sidelined shortstop Masyn Winn, placing him on the injured list Saturday after he left Friday’s game with back spasms. The team didn’t waste any time filling his roster spot, activating infielder Nolan Gorman who had been out since April 1 with a hamstring strain.
Winn, just 23 years old, had to exit during the second inning of Friday’s matchup against the Philadelphia Phillies. His sudden departure forced the Cardinals into some creative defensive juggling.
The situation got pretty weird, actually.
Brendan Donovan, normally a second baseman, was already in the lineup as designated hitter. Not wanting to lose their DH spot right away, the Cardinals shifted Thomas Saggese from second to shortstop and—in a truly desperate move—put catcher Pedro Pagés at second base. The funny thing? Pagés had zero experience playing second base at any professional level.
Later in the game, the Cardinals finally gave up the DH position to move Donovan to a defensive spot. Despite the defensive musical chairs, they managed to shut out the Phillies 2-0.
Winn hasn’t been hitting well in his first 13 games this season, batting just .222 with a single home run. That’s a significant drop from his .267 average last year.
The young shortstop had hoped to avoid the injured list entirely.
“It will probably cost me a couple of days, which is fine, but I’ve already told them I’m not going on the IL,” he told MLB after Friday’s game. “It was similar [to the spasms of 2024]. Last year was actually a little bit worse. I’ve just got to get through this one after the muscles spasmed up.”
Unfortunately for Winn, the team made the cautious decision anyway.
Gorman, 24, returns after playing just two games to start the season, where he collected four hits in eight at-bats. He’s looking to bounce back from a disappointing 2023 season when he struggled at the plate.
In his three-plus years in the majors, Gorman has hit .224 with 61 home runs. He’s been a slightly above-average hitter overall according to OPS+, but consistency has been his biggest challenge.
With Winn sidelined, expect to see Donovan and Saggese sharing shortstop duties while Gorman handles second base.
The Cardinals enter Saturday’s game with a 6-7 record in the early going of the season.
