The St. Louis Cardinals best defender, Michael Siani, is inching toward a return from an oblique injury that has sidelined him for the past two weeks. Siani has yet to resume swinging but has resumed some fielding drills, according to MLB reporter John Denton.
Cardinals Best Defender Inching Towards Return From Injury
Siani’s Injury Rehab
Siani hit the IL on August 4th after injuring his oblique on a foul ball swing against the Chicago Cubs. The Cardinals have already dealt with oblique injuries this season from outfielder Lars Nootbaar and infielder Matt Carpenter.
“It looks like it’s something that is going to sideline him for a little bit,” Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol told KMOX radio after the injury. “It’s definitely an oblique and we know how those go.”
This week, Siani resumed running and participating in some light fielding drills, Marmol told Denton. He has yet to resume swinging the bat. Siani is projected to return from injury in early to mid-September.
One Of The League’s Top Defenders
The calling card for the rookie center fielder this season has been his defense. Siani has a fielding run value of 13, the fourth highest in the League and third highest among MLB outfielders.
Siani has baseball’s seventh-best outfielder jump metrics, with 3.1 feet better than the average MLB jump. He also has an outs-above-average of 15, the fifth highest in MLB and third highest among outfielders.
“He’s been unbelievable in center, one of the best center fielders in the game right now,” Marmol said in June. “His first step is incredible; he has saved us multiple times.”
Before the injury, Siani had been a regular starter in center field for the Cardinals, providing a safety net for pitchers with a series of circus catches.
One Of The Team’s Hottest Hitters
Siani was on a 12-game hit streak heading into the game when he was injured. The streak was snapped when he exited the game early with the injury. a
In his last 14 games, Siani had a slash line of .400/.455/.425. During that stretch, his OPS of .880 was the best among the Cardinals every-day starters.
In those 14 games, Siani also helped the team on the basepaths, scoring nine runs and stealing four bases. He is in the top 25 percent of the league for sprint speed on the basepaths, according to Baseball Savant.
Cardinals Are Struggling
The Cardinals slipped back to .500 on Tuesday with a 4-1 loss to the Cincinnati Reds. They are 3-6 since Siani’s injury. However, the slump started before that. In the past month, the Cardinals are 10-15 and have moved from in a Wild Card spot to three-and-a-half games back from one.
The team made big moves at the Trade Deadline, acquiring a much-needed starting pitcher in Erick Fedde and a right-handed bat in Tommy Pham. However, since the trade deadline, the team has been playing two games under .500. In the past month, the Cardinals have had the seventh-lowest run total in the League at 96.
“We just have to own it; at the end of the day, nobody is going to feel sorry for us. We’ve got to own the fact that we haven’t come through in certain situation,” Marmol said after Tuesday’s loss to the Reds. “Moving forward we just have to be better. That’s the bottom line.”
Main Photo Credits: Jeff Le-USA TODAY Sports
