Cards lay out return protocols, Carlson plans

ST. LOUIS -- The Cardinals hit the road on Friday and drove toward baseball in Chicago, where they’ll resume their season against the White Sox on Saturday after what amounted to a 16-day layoff from games due to a coronavirus outbreak within the organization. The 40-plus-car convoy cruising up the interstate, as well as the three upcoming doubleheaders over the next five days, had Cardinals manager Mike Shildt thinking back to his amateur baseball days.

“I thought it was great,” Shildt said. “We’re driving towards playing baseball and getting back to competition and doing it separately but together. Took me back to some grassroot days, legion ball, driving three hours to playoff games and tournaments and all kinds of fun stuff. So I thought it was great.”

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To stay apart until Saturday’s game, members of the Cardinals who were quarantined over the past week each drove a rental car to Chicago on Friday. There were 41 cars awaiting the team when they showed up to Busch Stadium on Friday. While some got fancier rides, Shildt told traveling secretary Ernie Moore that he would take the last one that no one wanted.

Shildt ended up with a GMC Yukon and was the last to leave Busch Stadium. He had to finish his shagging responsibilities first -- a duty that has fallen on the manager over the last few days as the Cardinals were able to hold individual workouts at the stadium to stay in shape, with one player coming in for around 30 minutes. When it was a hitter taking batting practice off a machine, Shildt and athletic trainer Chris Conroy were spaced out in the outfield shagging the balls.

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The Cardinals will each drive to the ballpark on Saturday, but after they gather as a group, the regular travel plan of bussing to and from the hotel will take place after the games. The rental cars were another effort to make sure that when the club returns to play, it'll be able do so unhampered. The health and safety protocols players, coaches and staff members follow will be even more stringent, too, from showing up to the ballpark later in the day to having every meeting outside. Masks will be worn more frequently. If players aren’t playing that day, they won’t be in the dugout.

“We’ll just continue to be even more mindful of the protocols,” Shildt said. “I don’t think you’ll have anybody touch anybody on this field the rest of the year. I think our dugouts will be even more sterile. We’re gonna continue to do what we’ve done in the past but limit our exposure in the clubhouse. We’re gonna show up and old-school get after it and compete. And we’ll figure out the best way we can to prepare, which is a strength of the club. But we’ll figure out the alternative ways to make sure we’re prepared to the best of our ability, individually, to collectively compete.”

Carlson to get plenty of playing time
The Cardinals have maintained that when top prospect Dylan Carlson gets to the Majors, he’ll play rather than sit on the bench. And his playing time will start right away on Saturday.

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Shildt said that Carlson will be in the starting lineup for the first game against the White Sox, and the manager even gave away the switch-hitter’s spot in the batting order for Saturday: sixth. Shildt wouldn’t reveal what outfield position Carlson will play, saying that the team hadn’t gotten that information yet. But moving forward, Carlson will likely see time at all three spots.

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“He’s raring to go,” Shildt said. “He’s been working out and getting after it -- and playing and running and throwing and hitting. We’re going to go check it out, and excited to watch it.”

Pitching plans
Shildt laid out a tentative pitching plan for the Cardinals over the next week, after Adam Wainwright starts Game 1 on Saturday, the bullpen follows in Game 2 and Dakota Hudson starts on Sunday. Left-hander Kwang Hyun Kim is scheduled to make his first start with the Cardinals in Game 1 of Monday’s doubleheader, followed by another bullpen game. Daniel Ponce de Leon will start on Tuesday. And Jack Flaherty is scheduled to start a game in Wednesday’s doubleheader -- 3 1/2 weeks after his Opening Day start against the Pirates on July 24.

Flaherty threw a bullpen session on Friday and will throw another before Wednesday. He’s healthy, Shildt said, but the Cardinals want to be cautious with their players and how they get back into game shape, considering it’s been over two weeks days since their last game. Shildt acknowledged that it will take some time for the Cardinals to look like they’re in regular-season shape.

“Clearly, there’s games to be won and competitions to be had, but it won’t come at an expense to someone’s health,” Shildt said. “But someone has to pitch the innings. We do have the extra pitcher for the doubleheader. And we’ll just continue to communicate. We’ve talked extensively with our group about just that.”