When reliever Max Rajcic was placed on the Injured List with an elbow injury on Monday, he became the first Cardinals pitcher to suffer an arm injury in more than 22 months. The extent of Rajcic's elbow injury has not been disclosed by the Cardinals.
When Max Rajcic was placed on the 15-day Injured List with a right elbow injury, it meant a derailment of the promising young reliever’s career, but it also signaled the end of one of the best runs of injury-free baseball for the Cardinals pitching staff in decades.
Rajcic, 24, is reportedly headed for a second opinion on an elbow injury that the Cardinals have offered no clarity about. The 2023 Cardinals Minor League Pitcher of the Year last pitched on Friday in Chicago, striking out three and allowing just two hits and an earned run over 2 1/3 innings of work.
Incredibly, Rajcic’s arm injury resulting on an Injured List stint is the first for a Cardinals pitcher in 22 months – since Sept. 25, 2024, when reliever JoJo Romero was placed on the IL at season’s end for precautionary reasons with flexor tendon inflammation in his left forearm.
Using a system designed to lessen the workload on pitchers early in the season – when elbow, shoulder and forearm injuries statistically most often happen -- the Cardinals went all the 2025 season without an arm injury that led to an IL stint. It was believed to be the first season in which a Cardinals pitcher did not spent time on the Injured List with an arm injury since 1982, a year when the club won the World Series in seven games over the Milwaukee Brewers.
That streak carried over into this season when Cardinals’ pitchers once again avoided arm/shoulder injuries until this past weekend in Chicago.
To bring some perspective to the rarity of the Cardinals extended run of great health, the rival Cubs have had to place 13 pitchers on the IL this season – most of them with debilitating arm and shoulder injuries.
May signed with Cards because of injury history
Dustin May, Monday night’s starter for the Cardinals in their four-day, five-game series against the National League Central Division-leading Brewers, admitted over the winter that one of the reasons he signed with the Cardinals was their history of keeping their pitchers healthy.
May, who pitched the first complete-game shutout of his career against the Padres on June 15, missed most of three seasons early in his career with two major elbow injuries – both requiring Tommy John surgery – and another after suffering a life-threating esophageal tear upon getting a piece of lettuce stuck in his throat.
May, who has twice had balls lined of his ankles in games against the Tigers and Braves, was forced to skip a start in late June because of back pain that started the night of his gem against the Padres and carried into a pour start in Kansas City on June 21.
May was hit in the right ankle by a 91.6 mph liner last Thursday in Atlanta and he failed to make it out of the first inning before allowing five earned runs. His next start was moved up to tonight, but manager Oliver Marmol told reporters that May would be limited to 65 pitches against the Brewers to guard against a potential arm injury.
Gordon Graceffo, who pitched well in relief of May in last Thursday’s 11-5 win over the Braves in Atlanta, was recalled to replace Rajcic on the 26-man roster. Graceffo is 6-1 with a 3.35 ERA this season in 35 appearances out of the Cardinals bullpen.
Rajcic, a sixth-round pick out of UCLA in the 2022 MLB Draft by the Cardinals, spent his first three years in pro ball as a starter with mediocre results. His career took off when he was moved into a relief role this season with Triple-A Memphis.
He made his MLB debut on June 18 in Kansas City and surrendered a solo home run to All-Star catcher Salvador Perez. Since then, Rajcic settled into his new role with the Cardinals and pitched well over his final five outings. He also pitched a scoreless inning in last week’s 11-5 win over the Braves after May had to depart in the first inning.
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