Cardinals DFA veteran reliever with latest roster move

The St. Louis Cardinals made a bullpen-related roster change Saturday, promoting left-hander Brycen Mautz from Triple-A Memphis while designating veteran reliever Caleb Ferguson for assignment ahead of their matchup with the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Mautz, 25, returns to the majors after spending most of the 2026 season with Memphis. The Cardinals’ 2025 Minor League Pitcher of the Year owns a 1-6 record and 3.78 ERA across 31 Triple-A appearances, including 16 starts. He has worked 85 2/3 innings and recorded 89 strikeouts against 65 walks.

Although Mautz began the season as a starter, Memphis has gradually shifted him toward relief work. His most recent 15 appearances have all come from the bullpen, a transition that could help St. Louis manage its pitching workload. The Cardinals plan to use Mautz in a piggyback role behind Kyle Leahy against the Pirates as they attempt to control Leahy’s innings after he surpassed his previous career high.

Mautz previously reached the majors on May 25 against the Milwaukee Brewers. In that appearance, he allowed two runs over three innings.

The roster spot previously belonged to Ferguson, whom St. Louis acquired from the Cincinnati Reds at the 2026 trade deadline. The Cardinals sent Cincinnati $250,000 in international bonus space in the transaction, but Ferguson never settled in during his short tenure with St. Louis.

The 30-year-old lefty appeared in nine games for the Cardinals, covering 8 1/3 innings while logging an 8.64 ERA. He surrendered at least one earned run in five of those nine appearances. Ferguson finished his St. Louis stint with nine strikeouts and eight walks and had pitched in three of the previous four days before being designated.

His downturn was a far cry from the level of production he had maintained with the Reds, where he finished with a 4.01 ERA, 20.2% strikeout rate and 10.2% walk rate over 24 2/3 innings across 26 appearances.

Because the trade deadline has passed, Ferguson can now only move to another organization through the waiver process. If he clears waivers, he has enough MLB service time to reject a minor-league assignment and become a free agent.

Mautz’s promotion also leaves the Cardinals with an open spot on their 40-man roster because he was already a member of that roster.

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