Ex-Cardinals All-Star Reportedly Released By AL Central Club After Suffering Setback

One former member of the Cardinals is looking for a new home

The Detroit Tigers were busy Sunday afternoon. 

Detroit made a pair of moves involving veteran relief pitchers as the club released former longtime Boston Red Sox reliever Heath Hembree and former longtime St. Louis Cardinals All-Star Trevor Rosenthal, according to the Detroit News' Chris McCosky. 

"Tigers have released two veteran RHPs who were on minors deals: Heath Hembree and Trevor Rosenthal," McCosky said.

Rosenthal hasn't appeared in a big league game since 2020 as injuries have derailed his once-budding career. The one-time All-Star signed a minor league contract with Detroit ahead of the 2023 campaign as he looked to work his way back to the big leagues, but made just three appearances in the minors before suffering an elbow injury that will force him to miss the remainder of the season.

When Rosenthal has been healthy he has been a dominant reliever throughout his career. Rosenthal compiled an impressive 2.99 ERA throughout his six-year career with the Cardinals and struck out 435 batters in just 325 innings. The righty was so dominant during the 2015 season that he even earned Most Valuable Player votes after pitching to a 2.10 ERA in 68 appearances. 

Rosenthal was drafted by the Cardinals in the 21st round of the 2009 MLB June Amateur Draft and made his big league debut during the 2012 season. The 33-year-old spent the first six years of his big league career in St. Louis. Since 2019, Rosenthal has spent time with the Washington Nationals, Tigers, Kansas City Royals, and San Diego Padres at the big league level. 

At this point, Rosenthal's focus will have to turn to 2024, but if he's fully healthy next year, maybe a reunion could make sense. Rosenthal has a career 3.36 ERA in eight seasons. Hopefully, he's able to recover quickly and get back on track in 2024.

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