St. Louis Cardinals: Molina Suffers Partially Torn Left Thumb Ligament

Cardinals, one of the best teams in baseball this season, just suffered a major blow after their All-Star catcher Yadier Molina partially tore the ligament in his left thumb. The team does not yet know if Molina will be able to return to catching before the regular season is up.

Last season, Molina had to miss two months with a torn ligament in his right thumb, but the Cardinals said that the newest injury is in his gloved hand and isn’t as severe as the injury he suffered last season, which took him out of the running to play in the All-Stars.

Yadier Molina was hurt while he was tagging out the Cub’s Anthony Rizzo who attempted to score the tying run on a fly ball during Sunday’s game, according to Seattle Pi. Molina will be re-evaluated the either the end of this week or early next week to see how the injury has progressed and when he may be able to return to the line up.

On Monday, Cardinals’ general manager John Mozeliak answered questions about Molina, saying that when he is re-evaluated is when they can know about the fate of the catcher.

“We’ll make a decision there to see if we can push forward.”

Tony Cruz will take Molina’s place as the Cardinals wait to see his outcome. Cruz also took Molina’s place when he was injured in the final three games against the Giants during the 2014 National League championship series. Cruz also threw out a runner during Sunday’s game who was attempting to steal in the ninth inning. For now, Cruz will be the regular catcher with Ed Easley and Travis Tartamella as back-up.

“It’s always tough to fill someone’s shoes when you;re as talented as Yadi is. But Cruz has had opportunities, in the past. Last year ended up being on the postseason roaster because of what he showed. I think he is going to take advantage of this.”

The Cardinals decided to purchase the contract of 27-year-old Travis Tartamella as a third catcher option while Yadier is out. Mozeliak is hopeful that Yadier will return before the regular season is up and either join the team as they play in Pittsburgh or Atlanta later in the month.

Yadier Molina is currently batting.270 with four home runs and 61 RBIs.

[Image by Ralph Freso/ Getty Images]