Jon Jay and Matt Carpenter could return

On 590 The Fan, Joe Strauss said that he expects St.Louis Cardinals injured role players Jon Jay and Matt Carpenter to be activated from the disabled list in time to play the Kansas City Royals over the weekend. Carpenter will almost certainly be able to get off the deal, but Jon Jay’s situation is a little bit more sketchy.

Strauss expects the Cardinals to send down Matt Adams and Adron Chambers to Triple-A Memphis as a result.

It should be noted that Jon Jay hasn’t taken many plate appearances in rehab assignment games, but he should still be activated. His shoulder injury is definitely more serious than Carpenter’s oblique injury, but Jay has went 3-8 with a homer and a triple in his rehab at-bats. That’s only eight ABs, but he does look ready for action.

Jay will most certainly start in center field right when he comes back, while Matt Carpenter is expected to play in the outfield and spend most of his time playing at first base.

In 118 plate appearances this season, Carp has a good 136 wRC+ with an average walk rate and a high strikeout rate. He has gotten on base at over a .350 clip, but his high .346 BABIP has fueled his hitting ability. Still, Carpenter is a solid hitter and should be worth 1.5 WAR if given 400 PAs.

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