When Nick Castellanos flexed over Jake Woodford before the barn doors broke open and the benches cleared on Saturday in Cincinnati, there was little surprise as to who was in the middle of the skirmish.

Yadier Molina protected Woodford, the rookie pitcher and youngest arm on the Cardinals’ roster who was later reaffirmed on the field by Adam Wainwright. The controversy-averse Paul Goldschmidt tried to keep the peace.

The ever-competitive Jordan Hicks “wanted to be there for my guys.”

And in flew Nolan Arenado, with only one full game as a Cardinal at the time before going to bat for his new teammates.

“We've seen Nolan charge the mound before in Colorado,” Paul DeJong joked on Saturday, “so we knew [he’d] be right in the middle of it.”

As a result of what happened, Castellanos was handed a two-game suspension, MLB announced ahead of the Cardinals’ series opener Monday in Miami, while six players were handed undisclosed fines, including Arenado, Molina and Hicks -- an outcome manager Mike Shildt “felt like was right, and MLB concurred.”

Pleased with no suspensions of his own, Shildt learned a few lessons about his club just one weekend into the season, though it was “not something that we felt like we had to confirm.” Clubs usually hope to avoid on-field altercations altogether, or at least get tangled up in them later in the season, so they were quick lessons at that.

“You get in the trenches, and sometimes those skirmishes -- you don't want [them] to happen, sometimes they happen a little later in the season, based on people competing for the playoffs -- but you do find out about people,” Shildt said. “We found out in spades about our group.

“I'm even more optimistic than ever about this group, because when it groups together, it’s that passionate. That's one of the most important things you can ask for, because it's a team, right?”

The Cardinals’ resolve has been tested early this season, dropping the second two games in Cincinnati after coming out bopping on Opening Day, with injuries already plaguing the roster. What gives the group some of its tenacity this season is its takeaways from the last, when a COVID-19 outbreak derailed the club in the beginning of August and tossed players into unprecedented circumstances in an already unprecedented year.

Add on top of that the mere fact that Arenado is the only player on the current roster who wasn’t in the organization last season, and there’s a carryover effect the club believes in.

“You do a lot of special things with groups that care about each other as much as they care about the greater good,” Shildt said. “Or by themselves, they care about the greater good more. Special trait for a special team.”

There are countless steps to respond to early adversity and turbulence. The most logical first one is winning ballgames in Miami.

Kim’s next steps
Kwang Hyun Kim (back tightness) will throw a simulated game on Tuesday against Cardinals Minor Leaguers in Jupiter, Fla., and then rejoin the team Wednesday in Miami, flying back with the club ahead of the home opener on Thursday. That sets up the lefty to come off the injured list in the near future, but the Cards are still pinpointing when that will be.

Kim is slated for 5-6 innings (75 pitches) in his second simulated game since making a Grapefruit League appearance on March 27.

The Cardinals could sure use Kim, given only one of their top three starters completed five innings in their first turn in the rotation; Jack Flaherty, Adam Wainwright and Carlos Martínez conceded 16 earned runs combined.