St. Louis Cardinals

Hunter Dobbins

SP

Coming back from last year's ACL surgery, Dobbins is slated to make a fifth rehab start with Triple-A Memphis on Saturday. That would put him in line to make his Cardinals debut as soon as April 30 in Pittsburgh, and he appears likely to receive multiple turns as the club looks to keep their rotation members rested. Acquired over the offseason from the Red Sox in the Willson Contreras trade, Dobbins holds a 3.86 ERA and 16:4 K:BB over 18.2 frames covering his first four rehab outings with Memphis.

Matt Pushard

RP

Pushed tossed a 20-pitch bullpen session Sunday and came out of it with no issues, clearing the way for him to pitch in rehab games. The rookie reliever is working his way back from right knee patellar tendinitis.

Packy Naughton

RP

Naughton will seek a second opinion before determining his next steps, but the 29-year-old lefty could be facing another elbow surgery after missing most of 2024 and all of 2025 due to a pair of elbow procedures.

Ixan Henderson

SP

Henderson reported to Cardinals camp in spring training with a flexor strain in his pitching arm and is now slated to miss at least the first two months of the minor-league season. It's unclear whether the left-hander has resumed throwing or remains shut down. Henderson had a breakout 2025 season at Double-A Springfield, holding a 2.59 ERA and 134:51 K:BB in 132 innings across 25 starts.

Lars Nootbaar

LF

Bloom noted that the team's current wish is to avoid the 60-day IL with Nootbaar, as the transaction would leave him ineligible to make his season debut until late May. However, that decision will be made after the Cardinals get a better sense of how far Nootbaar is along in his rehab from offseason surgery on both heels. Per Brian Walton of TheCardinalNation.com, Nootbaar is slated to take batting practice with minor leaguers at the team's spring training complex Tuesday. St. Louis will use a combination of Nathan Church, Thomas Saggese and Jose Fermin in left field until Nootbaar is ready.