The Cardinals are moving southpaw back to the bullpen, as manager Oli Marmol Nick Robertson Jersey told reporters including . The move may not be permanent, as Jones notes that Marmol described the move as for the time being, and added that Marmol made clear that the plan is for Matz to remain stretched out and able to step back into the rotation as needed in the future. The Cardinals have four days off in May, which makes running out a six-man rotation difficult and was the primary reason that Matz began the season in the bullpen before moving into the rotation just over two weeks ago. Temporary as the move back into a relief role may prove to be, it still has to be a frustrating turn of events for the soon-to-be 34-year-old veteran. Its impo sible to argue that the role change is performance related, as Matz boasts a tidy 1.50 ERA on the season with a 1.89 FIP overall. His work in the rotation has been even better, as in two starts hes struck out 11 of the 34 batters hes faced while allowing just one run and zero walks in a combined nine innings of work. Meanwhile, both and have posted below-average numbers by ERA+ acro s each of their six starts. With that being said, the move does make some sense. After all, Matz is no stranger to having his role changed in the season. 2025 is the southpaws fourth season in St. Louis, and all four of them have seen Matz both start games and pitch in relief. Its been a tumultuous tenure in St. Louis; while the lefty sports a 4.15 ERA and 3.78 FIP overall that paint him as a fairly typical mid-to-back of the rotation arm, two of his four years with the Cardinals have seen Matz pitch le s than 50 innings due to injuries while his ERA ballooned over 5.00. Between Matzs uneven performances over the years and his experience pitching in relief, its hard to deny that theres logic in moving him to the bullpen rather than a player like Mikolas who last pitched in relief as a major leaguer back in 2013. Regardle s of the role Matz pitches in going forward, he figures to be one of the more coveted arms available at the deadline if the Cardinals cant turn things around after a 14-19 start and the lefty continues to pitch at anything close to the level hes performed at this year. Pitching of all sorts is highly desirable on the trade market come the summertime, and contending clubs like the Yankees, Mets, and Rangers already have clear needs that a player like Matz could complement perfectly. The veteran is in his final season under team control, meaning the Cardinals would have little reason to hang onto him if they arent in contention come July, and if he can stay stretched out until trade season Matzs role flexibility could actually make him more valuable on the trade market by keeping teams in need of both rotation help and bullpen help interested in his services. Roy Halladay Jersey