Cardinals Place No. 10 Prospect on 60-Day Injured List

The St. Louis Cardinals are putting the finishing touches on the roster just ahead of Opening Day on Thursday against the Tampa Bay Rays.

On Monday, the Cardinals made a move that wasn't overtly shocking by any means, but helps with the flexibility of the roster by placing No. 10 prospect Tekoah Roby on the 60-Day Injured List, as shared on X by Brian Walton of TheCardinalNation.com.

"As expected, the Cardinals have placed 40-man roster RHS Tekoah Roby on the 60-day injured list at Triple-A Memphis," Walton wrote.

Roby underwent Tommy John surgery back in July and is still working his way back. When healthy, Roby is one of the most intriguing pitching prospects in the Cardinals' system. But after undergoing elbow surgery in July, he's expected to miss most of the 2026 season, if not all. So, this move to the 60-Day Injured List is nothing out of the blue, but instead is the logical next step from a bookkeepng point of view.

The Cardinals hurler was placed on the 60-Day IL

Feb 17, 2026; Jupiter, FL, USA; St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Tekoah Roby (38). Mandatory Credit: Jim Rassol-Imagn Images | Jim Rassol-Imagn Images

With Roby going to the 60-Day Injured List, that opens up a spot on the Cardinals' 40-man roster, which can be filled without removing someone else now. There just so happens to be a young guy in the infield who doesn't have a 40-man roster spot right now and needs one: JJ Wetherholt.

Wetherholt is all but guaranteed to be the team's Opening Day second baseman. With Roby going to the 60-Day Injured List, that frees up a spot on the 40-man roster that easily could be filled by Wetherholt or someone else. Roby is someone who was on the doorstep to the big leagues before getting hurt. In 2025, he made 16 starts in Double-A and Triple-A and had a 3.10 ERA to show for it. Six of his starts came at the Triple-A level and he had a 4.02 ERA over that stretch.

Unfortunately, it's going to be a bit before he's ready to return to the mound. In the short term, this opens up a roster spot for St. Louis ahead of Opening Day. Later on in the season, this will likely be a topic that comes up again. Hopefully, he's able to make a full recovery and get back on the mound before the 2026 season wraps up. In the meantime, that 40-man roster spot is going to be useful elsewhere and hopefully with the club's No. 1 prospect.