5 St. Louis Cardinals who don’t deserve to make the 40-man roster
By Tim Boyle
2) Why Wilking Rodriguez doesn’t deserve a Cardinals 40-man roster spot
You might not know this name yet because Wilking Rodriguez was only selected from the New York Yankees in December. He’s a Rule 5 Draft pick who last pitched professionally in the United States back in 2015. In the years since, Rodriguez has been picking up innings wherever he can. He popped back up on the map in 2020 pitching in the Mexican League.
The Cardinals are hoping to find some sort of lightning in a bottle with Rodriguez. It’s not a harmful Rule 5 selection. They can always return him to the Yankees if it doesn’t work out. Now 32, it’s a low-risk maneuver we shouldn’t expect to pay off.
As far as earning a spot on the 40-man roster goes, there’s a reason why he was available in the Rule 5 Draft. The Yankees didn’t believe in him enough to protect this pitcher. Are the Cardinals really going to give him a chance to find a spot in their bullpen?
In an offseason where the Cardinals have been relatively quiet, handing out roster spots to question marks like Rodriguez is not very fan-friendly. This is the kind of year where you don’t take risks. You make the obvious moves to get better.
Rodriguez will have to earn his 40-man roster spot. And because he was a Rule 5 Draft pick, it automatically means a place on the 26-man roster, too.