Nolan Gorman, Willson Contreras Remain Out of St. Louis Cardinals' Lineup
Second baseman Nolan Gorman and catcher Willson Contreras are both once again missing from the St. Louis Cardinals' lineup against the Oakland Athletics on Wednesday.
Gorman has been dealing with a back injury as of late, initially getting scratched from Monday's lineup with lower back tightness. He was also held out of the lineup Tuesday.
Contreras, meanwhile, left Monday's game with right hip tightness and missed Tuesday's game with the same injury.
Gorman has taken a leap in his second season with the Cardinals, boosting his batting average 15 points to .241 and his OPS 86 points to .814. The 23-year-old infielder has 24 home runs, 67 RBI and six stolen bases through 104 games in 2023.
Back stiffness gave Gorman documented issues in March and May of 2022, and Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch on Tuesday that it "just happens from time to time to him."
Marmol described Contreras' injury as general soreness that the team would keep an eye on.
The 31-year-old Contreras is in his first year with the Cardinals, coming off of seven seasons, three All-Star appearances and a World Series ring with the Chicago Cubs. In 100 games with the Redbirds, Contreras is batting .261 with 13 home runs, 49 RBI, six stolen bases and an .803 OPS.
Contreras and Gorman rank fourth and fifth, respectively, among St. Louis position players in WAR this season.
Taylor Motter is starting at second base in place of Gorman for the third consecutive game on Wednesday, while Andrew Knizner will once again replace Contreras at catcher.
The series finale between the Cardinals and Athletics is scheduled to get underway at 6:45 p.m. ET. Even without Gorman and Contreras, the Cardinals took games one and two, putting them in position to complete the sweep Wednesday.
St. Louis is currently sitting in last place in the NL Central at 54-66, putting the club on pace for its worst record in a full season since 1990.
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