Cardinals’ Sonny Gray set to take major step towards return from injury

Fresh off arguably the best season of his career, Sonny Gray signed a three-year, $75 million deal with the St. Louis Cardinals. Gray is set to front the Cardinals rotation as they try to bounce back from an uncharacteristically putrid 2023 season, but for now, the focus for the 34-year old starter is to get back on the mound as he continues to recover from the hamstring injury he sustained in early March.

According to John Denton, Cardinals beat reporter for MLB.com, Gray “will pitch in a simulated pregame situation at Roger Dean Stadium on Sunday”. A simulated game involves hitters standing at the plate but not swinging, and this is meant to gauge how Gray feels when he pitches under conditions that resemble an official ballgame more closely.

Denton added that the end goal in getting Sonny Gray back to 100 percent is for him to pitch for the Cardinals in their Opening Day tussle on March 28 against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Before sustaining the hamstring injury back on March 4, Gray had started two games for the Cardinals in Spring Training. The 34-year old right-hander did not allow any runs in 3.2 innings, allowing three hits and two walks while striking out three.

Barring an unforeseen setback, Gray should be able to return to the mound on the 28th; the Cardinals have 13 days to get their ace healthy by then, and the hope is that the simulated game goes according to plan, with the veteran starter going through it without feeling any more adverse effects from his hamstring injury.

The Cardinals have high hopes for Sonny Gray, hence their decision to give him a huge contract in free agency. Gray, during his age-33 season, was able to take his game to the next level, tallying a 2.79 ERA across 32 starts (184 innings pitched). This season from Gray was good for a total of 5.3 WAR, per Fangraphs, as Gray, despite not having the best strikeout rate, was able to limit hard contact.

Some regression may be due for Gray, as he allowed just 0.39 home runs per nine innings last season — an outlier season compared to his track record. Nevertheless, Gray’s deep repertoire of pitches allows him to throw hitters off balance, so he should remain near the top of his game for as long as he has fully put his hamstring issues in the rearview mirror.