The Cardinals may not have to wait much longer for JJ Wetherholt.
St. Louis has been without the rookie since Aug. 29 because of wrist tendinitis, but the latest update points to a return during the club’s upcoming home stand.
Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported Tuesday that Wetherholt took swings on Monday and is moving through a progression aimed at getting him back in the lineup soon.
"JJ Wetherholt (wrist tendinitis) took swings Monday at Oracle Park and began a progression that is designed to bring him back to the lineup during the upcoming home stand," Goold wrote. "The Cardinals do not expect Wetherholt to be active on the first day he is eligible - which is the final day of the nine-game, three-city road trip."
That road trip wraps up Wednesday against the San Francisco Giants. After that, St.
Louis heads into a nine-game home stand against the Chicago White Sox, Giants and Washington Nationals. The schedule gives the Cardinals a stretch of winnable series at a time when they’re sitting at 72-73 and still have a shot to finish above .500, with an outside chance to make a late push at a playoff spot.
Wetherholt’s absence has been felt. Before going on the injured list, he was hitting .242/.343/.370 with a .713 OPS, along with 17 home runs, 48 RBIs, 14 stolen bases, 14 doubles and 88 runs scored in 130 games. His 4.7 wins above replacement is tied for 26th in baseball.
His return would matter beyond the day-to-day lineup card, too. Wetherholt is still in the mix for National League Rookie of the Year, where he’s chasing Cincinnati Reds slugger Sal Stewart.
If he can close that gap and win the award, it would bring another high draft pick to St. Louis.
For now, the important part is simpler: the Cardinals sound like they’re close to getting one of their best players back.
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