Young Cardinals Outfielder Sustains Season-Ending Injury After Brutal Slide

St. Louis has been riddled by injuries

Scott Neville | Sep 20, 2023

Young Cardinals Outfielder Sustains Season-Ending Injury After Brutal Slide /

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St. Louis Cardinals

The St. Louis Cardinals were officially eliminated from the playoffs after Tuesday's loss to the Milwaukee Brewers, which has been a forgone conclusion for months.

At this point, the Cardinals' sole goal should be to stay healthy, something that has been an added challenge over the last few weeks. With just a handful of games left, yet another outfielder sustained a season-ending and offseason-altering injury.

"Bummer for Alec Burleson. After driving in the first run of the game, he stole third and slid hard into the bag, fracturing his left thumb in the process," The Athletic's Katie Woo tweeted Tuesday. "That will end his season. Really encouraging campaign for Burleson this year."

Burleson hit .244 with 29 extra-base hits including eight home runs, 36 RBIs and a .691 OPS (88 OPS+) in 107 games. This was his first full season in the majors. The 24-year-old hit .273 with a .742 OPS in the second half of the season and appears poised for an impactful season in 2024.

That said, the Cardinals have to get there first, and that will not be the easiest journey. As it stands now, Lars Nootbar, Richie Palacios, Jordan Walker and Juan Yepez are the only true outfielders on the roster.

Outfielders Dylan Carlson, Tyler O'Neill and Brendan Donovan -- who had to learn the position on the fly this year -- are all out, likely for the season. They'll miss second baseman Nolan Gorman in the lineup as well.

It's almost time for the Cardinals season to mercifully conclude, kicking off an exciting retooling process this winter.

More MLB: Here's Cardinals' Updated Odds Of Landing Shohei Ohtani According To Sportsbook

Published Sep 20, 2023

SCOTT NEVILLE

Scott Neville covers the St. Louis Cardinals for FanNation's "Inside The Cardinals" on Sports Illustrated. Before starting "Inside The Cardinals", Neville attended Merrimack College, where he earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Communication and Media with a minor in Marketing. Neville spent all four years with Merrimack's radio station WMCK, where he grew as a radio/podcast host and producer. His propensity for being in front of a microphone eventually expanded to film, where he produced multiple short films alongside his then-roommate and current co-worker Stephen Mottram. On a journey that began as a way to receive easy credits via film classes, he received a call from "It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia" star Charlie Day. Day advised him to make a feature-length film, which he completed his senior year. While writing the film, Neville completed an internship for United Way as part of their NFL Partnership Program. Neville ran the blog for a team of interns and hosted an internet show called "United Way's NFL Partnership Series" where he interviewed NFL alumni. After college Neville wrote for SB Nation's "Over The Monster," a Red Sox sister site of the flagship brand. His work would eventually lead him to a job as a content producer with NESN, where he would cover all sports. After developing as a writer with the top regional network in the world, he was given the opportunity to join FanNation and the Sports Illustrated Media Group as the publisher of "Inside The Red Sox." After a few months as the top Major League Baseball site in the program, Neville sought expansion and pitched "Inside The Cardinals," one of the newest additions to FanNation and the Sports Illustrated Media Group. The successful launch and quick rise of "Inside The Cardinals" led to Neville joining the Baseball Essential ownership group, a national baseball site under SIMG. Follow him on Twitter: @ScottNeville46 Email: nevilles@merrimack.edu