JJ Wetherholt (wrist) back off the IL

Saggese gets a chance atop St. Louis’ lineup after doing a spectacular job filling in for JJ Wetherholt (wrist) and Masyn Winn (thumb) of late. The 24-year-old former prospect has hit .392 (20-for-51) with three homers, nine RBI and three steals over his last 15 games. He’s the type of sneaky late-season addition that can make a difference on the margins in an extremely deep fantasy league.

Saggese hit a two-run homer off Yoshinobu Yamamoto in the sixth and singled in the go-ahead run in a three-run 10th inning. He has eight hits and three homers in his last three games. It sounds like Masyn Winn is about ready to return, but one imagines Saggese will stay in the lineup. He probably should have been getting at-bats at Nolan Gorman’s expense months ago, but there’s still time for that to happen now.

Saggese had his best career day at the plate so far, starting with a solo homer off Eric Lauer in the second inning. After driving in a run on a sacrifice fly in the third inning, he went yard again in the fifth for a solo shot off Alex Vesia. Saggese then drew a walk and scored a third run in the eighth. The 24-year-old infielder was making his second start since he was recalled from Triple-A Memphis following injuries to Blaze Jordan and JJ Wetherholt.

Wetherholt played the entire game on Saturday, though he did get a day off to rest on Thursday, so it’s possible this is an issue that has lingered for a while. No word yet from the Cardinals on how long they expect him to be shelved for. César Prieto was recalled from Triple-A Memphis in a corresponding move on Sunday.

He takes Blaze Jordan’s spot on the roster. It would seem to make sense for the Cardinals to give Saggese more of a look than Nolan Gorman down the stretch, but we’re guessing if they wanted to do that, Saggese would have already been in the big leagues and not needed an injury to be recalled. Saggese is hitting .258/.340/.446 for Memphis this year with 10 homers and nine stolen bases in 249 plate appearances.

He’ll get a rest day, with José Fermín shifting to shortstop and recently-activated Ramón Urías at second base against LHP Trevor Rogers.

It’s new news that Winn has a fracture. The Cardinals figure to play JJ Wetherholt at shortstop for now. Nolan Gorman was recalled to replace Winn, but he didn’t play any second base in the minors, suggesting that he’ll remain limited to third base. That’s probably bad news for Blaze Jordan. Bryan Torres, José Fermin and Ramón Urías figure to see time at second base.

Winn has missed the last four games with a thumb injury, so the team can backdate the IL stint. JJ Wetherholt will continue to serve as the regular shortstop, with Ramon Urias and Nolan Gorman potentially forming a platoon at second base until Winn returns.

Wetherholt is up to 14 steals this season to go along with 17 homers. He also has 87 runs compared to just 48 RBI. That makes sense for a leadoff hitter, but these counting-stat differences can go unnoticed in fantasy. While his rookie season has been a success thanks to on-base ability and defense at second base, his fantasy campaign has been defined by hitting leadoff for the Cardinals all year. Alec Burleson and Jordan Walker are tied for second in MLB with 96 RBI each, boosting Wetherholt’s runs. He’ll need to work on his slugging output to make a sophomore jump in 2027.

Wetherholt’s home run was his 17th of the season. He hit a solo shot off Phillies reliever Jose Alvarado in the eighth inning. Wetherholt’s home run was his sixth against left-handed pitching this year. He’s hitting .243 with a .723 OPS and 47 RBI.