Cardinals Reliever Exits With Troublesome Sign

A possible troublesome situation is brewing in the St. Louis Cardinals bullpen. Lefty reliever Packy Naughton pitched to only three batters Friday night before exiting the field after a visit from the trainer, with what's being called "forearm tightness." That's never a good thing for a pitcher. 

Forearm tightness for Packy Naughton. Felt it on the ball four to Yelich. He’s getting checked out now, team will know more tomorrow. #STLCards

— Katie Woo (@katiejwoo) April 8, 2023

Naughton felt the problem after he walked Christian Yelich. 

The 27-year-old is in his 3rd big league season, and was off to a tremendous start to the year. He'd pitched five shutout innings, allowing only two hits, with five strikeouts and one walk. 

Naughton was claimed off waivers by the Cardinals from the Los Angeles Angels before last season. He pitched 32 innings for the Cards in 2022, with 4.78 ERA and an impressive 31:7 strikeout-to-walk ratio. He stranded an impressive 70% of inherited runners.

He also spent a bit of time in the minors where he performed extremely well, posting a 2.08 ERA in Triple-A, with a 25:5 K/BB mark in 21 innings. 

Hopefully, Naughton escapes serious injury with this issue, as he was really beginning to make his mark as an important arm in the Cardinals' bullpen.

:photo: Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports