St. Louis Cardinals

Cecil, 4 other Cardinals on injured list to start season

Published Mar. 26, 2019 3:53 a.m. ET

JUPITER, Fla. (AP) — The St. Louis Cardinals placed five players on the injured list as they shaped their roster for Thursday's opener at Milwaukee.

The team said Monday the official reason for Brett Cecil's designation is carpal tunnel syndrome, though the left-hander also is dealing with arm fatigue and erratic mechanics. Right-hander Carlos Martinez is out with a strained rotator cuff and reliever Luke Gregerson with a right shoulder impingement.

Jedd Gyorko will start the season on the IL after dealing with a calf issue for most of March. He was hoping to be ready by opening day but will instead be out until at least April 4.

Justin Williams is on the IL with a fracture in his right hand, though the Cardinals have plenty of depth in the outfield and he will likely head to Triple-A Memphis when he's ready to go.

Hours later, the Cardinals pared down to 25 active players with a flurry of moves. They optioned left-hander Tyler Webb to Memphis and reassigned seven players to the minors: right-hander Chris Beck, left-hander Tommy Layne, catchers Andrew Knizner and Francisco Pena, infielders Tommy Edman and Rangel Ravelo, and outfielder Dylan Carlson.