St. Louis Cardinals

Rosenthal scratched from Monday's start with muscle tightness

Published Mar. 5, 2017 5:02 p.m. ET

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. -- Trevor Rosenthal's bid to move into the rotation for the St. Louis Cardinals has hit a snag.

The Cardinals said Rosenthal has been scratched from his scheduled start on Monday against Minnesota because of muscle tightness in his right lat near his pitching arm.

The team made the announcement Sunday before playing the Mets.

The 2014 All-Star reliever has made two appearances this spring, tossing three innings and allowing three hits and one earned run.

Rosenthal began his career as a starter but moved to the bullpen, where he was the Cardinals' closer for two seasons. He lost his closing role to Seung-Hwan Oh, and is now trying to go back to starting.

The 26-year-old Rosenthal finished last season with a 4.46 ERA in 45 relief outings.

"When something is wrong, there is always the potential for something to go wrong even further into the spring," St. Louis manager Mike Matheny said. "I'd love to see every guy healthy all season long, but that's kind of fantasy land."