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The St. Louis Cardinals have been without a familiar face in the lineup since Opening Day. Outfielder Dylan Carlson, who is an everyday player when healthy, is slated to begin a rehab assignment in the minors this week, the team announced on Monday.
Carlson injured his shoulder on March 25, three days before the 2024 regular season began. He was diagnosed with a sprained left AC joint. Carlson took batting practice at Busch Stadium on Friday and Saturday. He could be back in the Cardinals lineup by the second week of May.
Carlson, 25, was a first-round pick by the Cardinals in 2016. He made his MLB debut with St. Louis in 2020 and had nearly 1,000 at-bats across the 2022 and 2023 seasons. He finished third in National League Rookie of the Year voting in 2021 after posting a .266/.343/.347 slash line with 18 homers, 31 doubles and 79 runs in 149 games for a 90-win Cardinals team.
His numbers dipped in 2022 as he missed over 30 games. He still managed to crack 30 doubles and score 56 runs, but he went hitless in two playoff games.
Carlson’s 2023 season was plagued by injury. He played in 76 games as he battled a sprained ankle. Carlson had a .219 batting average with 14 extra-base hits and 27 runs scored.
Carlson should slot right back into his starting role in center field and give the Cardinals a boost with his bat. St. Louis could use a jolt in its offense and Carlson has the tools to make some noise from the jump. He could carve out a prominent role for the Cardinals this season.
Cardinals weighing high expectations
Despite losing 91 games and finishing in last place in the NL Central in 2023, a lot of people projected the Cardinals to at the very least contend for a playoff berth. A nice group picked them to win the division as well, which does not look too promising a month into the season.
St. Louis is 13-15 entering Monday’s action and sits four and a half games back of first place in the NL Central. The Milwaukee Brewers are on top with a 17-10 record.
After getting swept by the Brewers last week, the Cardinals won consecutive series against the Arizona Diamondbacks and New York Mets. St. Louis’ offense has started to show some life but is still a long way away from being a consistent threat from top to bottom.
The Cardinals have scored the fewest runs of any National League team, with only the Oakland Athletics and Chicago White Sox scoring fewer runs. The Cardinals offense has a combined .636 OPS, ranked 27th in the league.
Dylan Carlson might not be able to fix everything that’s wrong with the Cardinals lineup, but he should improve their numbers. St. Louis has plenty of time to work out the kinks but doesn’t want to fall too far behind in the standings.
There could be a different conversation about the Cardinals in a month or two. For now, we can only talk about what we see, and so far it’s been a frustrating season for St. Louis.
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