Cardinals Demote Red-Hot Reliever for Hunter Dobbins

The St. Louis Cardinals are going to look a bit different on the mound on Thursday afternoon when they face off against Paul Skenes and the Pittsburgh Pirates.

St. Louis fans are going to get their first look at starting pitcher Hunter Dobbins, who has been working his way back up to the majors after his 2025 season was ended early with the Boston Red Sox after he tore his ACL.

It has been known that the Cardinals would be adding Dobbins for the contest. On Thursday morning, the Cardinals made the move official and activated Dobbins from the 15-Day Injured List and added him to the big league roster. In the process, the Cardinals demoted right-handed reliever Ryan Fernandez.

The Cardinals Demoted The Hurler On Thursday

Feb 17, 2026; Jupiter, FL, USA; St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Ryan Fernandez (64). Mandatory Credit: Jim Rassol-Imagn Images | Jim Rassol-Imagn Images

"RHP Hunter Dobbins has returned from his rehab assignment and been activated from the 15-day IL," the Cardinals announced. "RHP Ryan Fernandez has been optioned to Memphis (AAA)."

Fernandez has made four appearances with the Cardinals in the majors this season and actually has been very solid. The righty has a 1.59 ERA in 5 2/3 innings pitched to go along with a 9-to-2 strikeout-to-walk ratio.

Last season, Fernandez struggled. He had a 7.71 ERA in the majors for the Cardinals across 32 outings and 30 1/3 innings pitched. So far this season, he has looked much better than that and had two straight scoreless appearances under his belt before his demotion on Thursday. He went two scoreless innings against the Pirates on April 27 and struck out four and didn't allow a hit. On April 22, he had another scoreless inning. Overall, he has allowed only one earned run so far this season in 5 2/3 innings pitched.

Arguably, the decision is a bit questionable. Now, of course, the bullpen is a revolving door and we'll likely see him again in the not-so-distant future. But the Cardinals' bullpen hasn't been great overall this season. Frankly, the bullpen has been a weakness. But Fernandez has been someone who has strung together a few good outings in a row, at least. If you look elsewhere throughout the Cardinals' bullpen, there are struggles. Matt Svanson has a 10.34 ERA in 14 appearances. Justin Bruihl has a 5.87 ERA in a league-leading 16 appearances. Ryne Stanek has a 9.00 ERA in 14 appearances. The list goes on.

St. Louis needs more firepower in the bullpen, not less. Fernandez was somebody doing well. In the short term, the Cardinals are going to be rolling with a six-man rotation. It's unclear if that will stick beyond the club's current long stretch of consecutive games. Afterward, the club will need to evaluate the bullpen and either add another piece, or move a starter to the bullpen to help fix it.

Add us as a preferred source on Google