SAN DIEGO — Leave it to a rainstorm to reveal when the Cardinals can eventually expect to see Sonny Gray.
Due to poor weather and cold temperatures in the forecast for Indianapolis, the Cardinals right-hander had his scheduled rehab start there with Class AAA Memphis relocated to a simulated game in Springfield, Missouri. The move will also allow Gray to participate Thursday at Busch Stadium in the home opener festivities.
That detour also provides clarity for when he’ll catch up with the rotation.
A month removed from a “mild†tear of his right hamstring muscle, Gray will throw around 50 pitches against the Cardinals’ Class AA affiliate hitters Wednesday as they prepare to open their season.
Shortly before the Cardinals broke camp in Florida, Gray insisted that he needed to see a game before returning the majors from the injury, and that is scheduled to happen next week with Class AAA Memphis, weather permitting. He’ll aim for around 70 pitches in that outing. That puts his earliest return to the Cardinals as the next road trip, either in Arizona (April 14) or in Oakland (April 15-17).
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Gray was originally drafted by the Athletics and he debuted with them.
The Cardinals and Gray, the centerpiece of their offseason spending on free-agent starters, have discussed gearing his recovery to avoid building arm strength in the majors, preferring to escalate pitch count toward 80 via rehab starts. As with Steven Matz this past week in Los Angeles, it has been the Cardinals' practice to avoid having the starter surpass his previous exhibition or rehab pitch count in his first regular-season start.
That would suggest that the Cardinals want to get Gray to at least 75 pitches before having him start for them and throwing around that same total.
The Cardinals signed Gray to a three-year, $75-million contract around Thanksgiving, and they geared their spring pitching schedule around having him start opening day at Dodger Stadium. In the second inning of his second spring training start, Gray felt pain in his right hamstring and left the field. He has not pitched in a game since. His rehab has been limited to live batting practice sessions and simulated games against minor-league hitters.
Gray, 34, missed time in early 2022 with a similar hamstring injury. He went 8-8 this past season with a 2.79 ERA and finished second in the voting for the American League's Cy Young Award.
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