Cardinals Should Shut Down Star Shortstop After Major Injury Reveal

The Cardinals are playing with fire.

Aug 22, 2025; St. Petersburg, Florida, USA; St. Louis Cardinals shortstop Masyn Winn (0) throws the ball to first base for an out during the first inning against the Tampa Bay Rays at George M. Steinbrenner Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images | Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images

The St. Louis Cardinals are struggling to stay in the postseason race. After three straight series wins, two of which came against playoff hopeful teams, they have lost a series to the Seattle Mariners and failed to pick up any more ground in the National League Wild Card hunt. They are set to rebuild after the 2025 season ends as Chaim Bloom takes over for John Mozeliak.

Star shortstop Masyn Winn was scratched from Tuesday's starting lineup due to more knee pain, and it was later revealed that he has been playing through a torn meniscus. Rather than place him on the injured list, the Cardinals have opted to keep him on the roster for the rest of the year in hopes they can reach the postseason and they believe that his 2026 season will be in jeopardy.

However, the Cardinals are playing with fire here, and with them unlikely to reach the postseason, it would make more sense for them to shut down their star shortstop for the rest of the year.

Cardinals Must Shut Down Star Shortstop After Knee Injury

Aug 29, 2025; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; St. Louis Cardinals shortstop Masyn Winn (0) hits a RBI single in the third inning against the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park. Mandatory Credit: Katie Stratman-Imagn Images | Katie Stratman-Imagn Images

"Some stuff is probably going to have to be done this offseason to help me out,” Winn told reporters. “But I want to finish the year as strong as possible. I hate not playing games … but going forward, if I’m going to play the rest of the year out, maybe taking a day (off) here and there isn’t a bad idea.

I was told I probably can’t do too much worse to it, so that’s why I want to be out there. Knock on wood, if I can’t hurt myself any further because of this, then I want to be out there.”

Winn is hitting .253/.310/.363 with nine home runs, 51 RBI, a .673 OPS and a 2.3 WAR. He has collected 124 hits in 491 at-bats with St. Louis this season and has a 90 OPS+.

However, with the Cardinals unlikely to reach October, it doesn't make sense to keep pushing Winn through an injury. Despite the notion that Winn can't do any more damage to the knee, the Cardinals are still playing with fire, and they should not try to risk making things worse.

If the Cardinals were a clear contender, then it might make more sense to let him keep playing, but the Cardinals have options that can fill the void if Winn goes down.

More MLB: Cardinals Announce Painful Masyn Winn Injury Update