St. Louis Cardinals catcher Willson Contreras (finger), who is currently sidelined with a broken left middle finger, will be re-evaluated on Monday, and the Cardinals will then plan his path to a return, according to manager Oliver Marmol. Contreras didn't need surgery on his finger and has been out of a splint for the past week and is eager to return before the end of the 2024 season. The 32-year-old veteran backstop has been out since Aug. 24, and if he does manage to make it back before the end of September, it might only be for a handful of games, so fantasy managers shouldn't be counting on him at all the rest of the way. In the meantime, rookie Pedro Pages and Ivan Herrera will continue to split playing time behind the plate. Contreras was well on his way to a fourth straight 20-plus-homer season in 2024 before suffering the second serious injury of the campaign.

St. Louis Cardinals catcher Willson Contreras (finger) will not need surgery on his broken finger, according to manager Oliver Marmol. However, Contreras will be no impact for three weeks. The Cardinals have five weeks left in the regular season. The door is open for a return, but Contreras has no room for a setback along the way. The 32-year-old veteran backstop suffered a fractured right middle finger over the weekend when he was hit by a pitch and has already been placed on the injured list. Even if he does make it back at the tail end of the season, he's not going to have much time left to provide meaningful numbers for fantasy managers. Pedro Pages will now operate as St. Louis' primary catcher, with Ivan Herrera backing him up. It's a huge loss for the Cardinals as they battle for the final wild-card spot in the National League.

St. Louis Cardinals catcher Willson Contreras (finger) took a fastball off the right hand in the fourth inning of Saturday's 6-0 loss to the Twins, and after initially staying in the game to run the bases, has now been diagnosed with a fractured right middle finger. The Cardinals are expected to call up Ivan Herrera to replace him and split time with backup catcher Pedro Pages. Herrera filled in for Contreras earlier this season during Contreras' first IL stint, slashing .279/.340/.378 with three home runs, a .317 wOBA, and 105 wRC+ over 54 games. No timetable has been given for how long Contreras will be out, but it'd be hard to imagine he'll be back before the regular season ends.

St. Louis Cardinals catcher Willson Contreras had a huge night in his team's 8-5 win over the Kansas City Royals on Friday. Contreras went 3-for-4 with a double, two homers, a walk, and four RBI to power the Cardinals to victory. The veteran catcher kicked off the scoring with a two-run homer in the first inning and came back with another two-run shot in the ninth. After the big game, Contreras is now hitting .261 with 15 homers, 44 runs, 34 RBI, and three steals across 257 at-bats in 2024.

St. Louis Cardinals catcher Willson Contreras finished 2-for-5 with a game-tying solo home run Friday night and picked up an RBI single in a 7-6 extra-inning victory over the Washington Nationals. Contreras had a rough first week coming off the injured list with a 4-for-24 stretch and a .174 batting average, with all four hits only being singles while pitching in only one RBI. July has been a different story so far. Contreras in July has gone 5-for-17 (.294) in four games with two home runs and five RBI. Despite being injured for almost two months of the season, Contreras has remained a top-12 catcher after being ranked eighth at the position to start the season. He should be rostered in most fantasy leagues.

The St. Louis Cardinals officially activated catcher Willson Contreras (forearm) from the 10-day injured list on Monday and optioned catcher Nick Raposo to Triple-A Memphis in a corresponding move. The team also activated right-hander Nick Robertson (elbow) from the 15-day IL and optioned him to Memphis. Contreras will draw right back into the starting lineup at catcher and will bat third on Monday against the visiting Atlanta Braves and rookie right-hander Spencer Schwellenbach. The 32-year-old has made it back well before his projected timetable after fracturing his left forearm in early May, which has to make the Cardinals and fantasy managers ecstatic. Contreras will return to starting catching duties in St. Louis, but he may be eased back in with rookie Pedro Pages serving as his backup since Ivan Herrera (back) is on the IL.

All signs are pointing to St. Louis Cardinals catcher Willson Contreras (forearm) being activated from the injured list and returning to the starting lineup ahead of Monday's series opener against the visiting Atlanta Braves. Contreras fractured his forearm on May 7 and was originally slated to return by the All-Star break. Instead, he could rejoin the team weeks ahead of his projected timetable. He went 1-for-5 in his sixth minor-league rehab game for Triple-A Memphis, and his true testing point was catching back-to-back games, which he did on Friday and Saturday. He came out of those games fine and escaped a scar on Saturday when he was involved in a collision at home plate. With Ivan Herrera (back) also on the IL, rookie Pedro Pages is likely to stick around as Contreras' backup moving forward.

St. Louis Cardinals catcher Willson Contreras (forearm) arrived in the clubhouse ahead of Friday's game against the Boston Red Sox without a cast. Contreras is doing conditioning work, and he is hopeful that doctors will soon let him swing a bat with his right hand. It's a pretty remarkable turnaround for Contreras, who fractured his left forearm on May 7, and he noted that he's hopeful of returning to the Cardinals before the All-Star break in mid-July. In 31 games before going down, the 32-year-old star backstop was slashing .280/.398/.551 with six home runs, 11 doubles, 12 RBI, and two stolen bases across 128 plate appearances as St. Louis' primary backstop, and he should be stashed in the majority of fantasy leagues. Backup Ivan Herrera is worth a look in two-catcher settings for now, batting .448 (13-for-29) with five RBI during his current eight-game hitting streak.

St. Louis Cardinals catcher Willson Contreras (forearm) underwent successful surgery on Wednesday on his fractured left forearm and he's hoping to return by the All-Star break. Manager Oliver Marmol said that Contreras will likely be out for 10 weeks. The 31-year-old All-Star backstop was hit by a swing from New York Mets designated hitter J.D. Martinez this week and will now likely miss the rest of the first half of the season. Because of the lack of depth at the catching position in fantasy, Contreras needs to be stashed for now in all formats. In his absence, Ivan Herrera will be St. Louis' primary catcher, with prospect Pedro Pages backing him up. Herrera currently is hitting .232/.276/.377 with three home runs, 11 RBI and seven runs scored in his first 69 at-bats in 2024.

St. Louis Cardinals catcher Willson Contreras (forearm) said he will have surgery on his fractured left forearm in the coming days. Doctors have told him that he will likely miss six to eight weeks, but Contreras said he hopes to return to the team by the All-Star game in mid-July. The 31-year-old veteran backstop was hit by the swing of Mets designated hitter J.D. Martinez on Tuesday night and was in obvious pain. With Contreras now out for the foreseeable future, Ivan Herrera's fantasy stock just skyrocketed as St. Louis' primary catcher. The team is likely to recall Pedro Pages from Triple-A Memphis when they officially put Contreras on the injured list. Contreras entered Tuesday's game hitting .274 (29-for-106) with six home runs, 12 RBI and two steals. He needs to remain stashed in all fantasy formats while he's out.

St. Louis Cardinals catcher Willson Contreras (arm) has been diagnosed with a fractured left arm after exiting Tuesday's game against the visiting New York Mets in the second inning. Contreras was writhing in pain after getting hit on a swing by J.D. Martinez, and he immediately came out of the game. It's a massive blow to a Cardinals offense already struggling to produce runs as well as Contreras, who will face some kind of lengthy absence following the setback. Through 128 plate appearances (31 games) for St. Louis this year, the 31-year-old star backstop was slashing a robust .280/.398/.551 with six home runs, 11 doubles, 12 RBI, 20 runs scored, and two stolen bases. Ivan Herrera stepped in on Tuesday and figures to get all the action he can handle behind the dish in Contreras' stead, slashing just .215/.264/.369 with three homers and 11 RBI over 65 at-bats. Fantasy managers can find better replacements on waiver wires.

St. Louis Cardinals catcher Willson Contreras (hand) is back in the team's lineup on Wednesday, serving as the designated hitter and batting second against Arizona Diamondbacks left-hander Jordan Montgomery. Ivan Herrera is doing the catching and is hitting fifth. Left-hand soreness caused the Cardinals to lift Contreras from Tuesday's game early, but manager Oliver Marmol said the decision to pull Contreras had more to do with the lopsided score. Still, the 31-year-old veteran's hand issue is something to keep an eye on. It hasn't affected him at the plate so far, as he's currently hitting .292 (19-for-65) with three home runs and eight RBI in 19 games. He's gone hitless in eight career at-bats against Montgomery, but fantasy managers in single-year leagues need to get him back into their lineups.

St. Louis Cardinals catcher Willson Contreras (hand) is back in the team's starting lineup on Tuesday, serving as the designated hitter and batting third in the order against right-hander Zack Wheeler and the Philadelphia Phillies. Contreras is still dealing with soreness in his left hand and will make his first start since being hit by a pitch last Wednesday. The 31-year-old still feels the injury slightly when he swings, so DFS gamers would probably be smart to avoid him in his first game back. Ivan Herrera is starting at catcher and is batting sixth in St. Louis' lineup. In addition to Contreras not being 100 percent just yet, he's returning to a tough matchup against Wheeler, a pitcher he's hit just .200 against with one RBI in 15 career at-bats.

The St. Louis Cardinals scratched catcher Willson Contreras (hand) from the starting lineup yet again on Monday against the visiting Philadelphia Phillies. Ivan Herrera is making yet another start behind the dish for the Cardinals and is hitting fifth in the order against Phillies right-hander Spencer Turnbull. Second baseman Nolan Gorman is in the three-hole. Manager Oliver Marmol feels that Contreras will be ready to catch by Tuesday. The 31-year-old backstop will sit out a fourth straight game due to a sore left hand that was injured last Wednesday when he was hit by a pitch. In the four games since Contreras has been hurt, Herrera has stepped in nicely and gone 6-for-17 (.353) with a home run and three RBI. He'll be attractive again in DFS lineups in the five-hole against Turnbull.

St. Louis Cardinals catcher Willson Contreras (hand) remains out of action on Sunday as the club looks for the sweep of the winless Miami Marlins. Contreras was hit in the hand by a pitch on Wednesday against the San Diego Padres and hasn't played since. He was originally in Saturday's starting lineup before being scratched. The 31-year-old's injury doesn't appear to be serious, but the Cardinals don't want to bring the All-Star catcher back too soon, so they'll play it safe and hold him out again Sunday. Ivan Herrera will make another start behind the plate and bat cleanup against Marlins right-hander Max Meyer on Sunday. The young backstop has gone 6-for-16 (.375) in the early going with a homer and five RBI, and he's a nice DFS option yet again in the cleanup spot for St. Louis on Sunday. Check back on Monday to see if Contreras is active against the Philadelphia Phillies.

St. Louis Cardinals designated hitter Willson Contreras was scratched from the lineup on Saturday. Contreras was hit by a pitch in the left hand in Wednesday's game against the Padres and was not in the lineup Thursday. Alec Burleson will take his spot as DH on Saturday and 23-year-old Ivan Herrera will be behind the plate. Contreras is considered day-to-day at this point. The 31-year-old is off to a slow start this season, going 4-for-19 over his first six games, although three of his four hits have gone for extra bases. Ivan Herrera hit his first MLB home run on Thursday and is 4-for-9 over his last two games. Burleson is 4-for-21 to begin 2024 with one extra-base hit.

St. Louis Cardinals catcher Willson Contreras (hand) is back in the starting lineup on Saturday against the visiting Miami Marlins and left-hander Trevor Rogers, serving as the designated hitter and batting third. Ivan Herrera will stay behind the plate and bat fifth. Contreras had some swelling in his hand after getting hit by a pitch on Wednesday against the San Diego Padres, which is why he sat out the home opener on Thursday versus Miami. The 31-year-old backstop is back in there on Saturday, though, so fantasy managers in single-year leagues should return him to their starting lineups. Contreras may not be 100 percent, though, and he's off to a 4-for-19 (.211) start), although two of those four hits have cleared the fences. He has never faced Rogers in his career.

St. Louis Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said that X-rays showed no fracture in catcher Willson Contreras' left hand. The Cardinals hope Contreras will be available in some fashion on Saturday. The 31-year-old veteran backstop injured his left hand when he was hit by a pitch in Wednesday's loss to the San Diego Padres, which caused him to miss the home-opening win on Thursday over the winless Marlins. With Contreras out on Thursday, Ivan Herrera got the start behind the plate and went 2-for-5 with his first major-league home run, two RBI, two runs scored and two strikeouts in the team's 8-5 win. Don't be surprised if Herrera gets another start behind the plate on Saturday, with Contreras serving as the designated hitter.

St. Louis Cardinals catcher Willson Contreras (hand) is out of the lineup for the team's home opener on Thursday against the Miami Marlins due to a hand injury that he suffered when he was hit by a pitch in Wednesday's loss to the San Diego Padres. When the swelling in Contreras' hand goes down, he will undergo imaging to determine the severity of the injury, but fantasy managers should consider him day-to-day for now. Ivan Herrera is catching right-hander Lance Lynn on Thursday and batting cleanup against Marlins left-hander Ryan Weathers. The Cardinals added catcher Pedro Pages from Triple-A Memphis when they put Matt Carpenter (oblique) on the injured list on Thursday, so there's a possibility that Contreras will be forced to the IL himself, depending on the results of the tests on his hand.

St. Louis Cardinals catcher Willson Contreras (hand) is dealing with swelling in his left hand, and it's unknown if he'll be in the lineup on Thursday for the team's home opener against the Miami Marlins, according to manager Oliver Marmol. The swelling has not gone down enough in Contreras' hand for him to undergo imaging. From the looks of things, fantasy managers shouldn't expect him to be in the starting lineup on Thursday. The 31-year-old backstop was hit by a pitch in Wednesday's series finale against the San Diego Padres but remained in the game. If he cannot play on Thursday, Ivan Herrera will likely take over catching duties in the home opener. Contreras has had a slow to start in 2024, going 4-for-19 (.211) but he does have two home runs and four RBI in the first six contests. Check back to see if he's available on Thursday.