Liberatore (2-2) earned the win over Atlanta in Game 2 of Wednesday's doubleheader, allowing two hits and one walk while striking out eight over six scoreless innings.
Liberatore threw 85 pitches (54 strikes) in his longest outing of the season, which also earned him his first quality start. It was an impressive showing for the southpaw, as it was initially believed the Cardinals would be putting together a bullpen game for the nightcap. Liberatore had allowed three runs over his previous 4.1 innings entering Wednesday. He's now at a 3.86 ERA, 1.15 WHIP and 36:16 K:BB through 44.1 innings over 27 appearances (five starts). Liberatore will likely return to a relief role soon unless the Cardinals opt to include him in a six-man rotation.
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Cardinals' Matthew Liberatore: Starting second game Wednesday
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Liberatore will start the second game of Wednesday's doubleheader versus Atlanta, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.
Liberatore's last appearance was a spot start a week ago, and he went 3.2 innings and threw 48 pitches against the Marlins. Based on the workload he handled versus Miami, Liberatore should be capable of going at least that long in Wednesday's outing, though the St. Louis bullpen will certainly be needed to cover multiple innings.
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Cardinals' Matthew Liberatore: Serves up two homers in spot start
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Liberatore allowed two runs on three hits and a walk while striking out one over 3.2 innings in a no-decision versus the Marlins on Wednesday.
Liberatore was pressed into a spot start after Kyle Gibson (back) was a late scratch. This was one day after Liberatore was charged with a blown save after allowing a run in two-thirds of an inning. The southpaw yielded solo home runs to Bryan De La Cruz and Jesus Sanchez in the first inning. Liberatore has a 4.46 ERA, 1.25 WHIP and 28:15 K:BB over 38.1 innings over 26 appearances (four starts) this season, though he's mainly operated out of the bullpen as the Cardinals have tried to find one steady role for him. It's unclear at this time if Liberatore would be a candidate to start again should Gibson require a stint on the injured list.
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Cardinals' Matthew Liberatore: Getting spot start Wednesday
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Liberatore will start Wednesday's game in Miami in place of the injured Kyle Gibson (back), Lynn Worthy of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.
Gibson was a late scratch, forcing the Cardinals to turn to Liberatore, who threw 12 pitches and allowed one run over two-thirds of an inning in a relief appearance during Tuesday's loss to the Marlins. Liberatore has made three starts for St. Louis this season, but his last one came a month ago. He hasn't thrown more than 23 pitches in an appearance since then and will be going on zero days' rest Wednesday, so he'll presumably be in store for an abbreviated outing.
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Cardinals' Matthew Liberatore: Throws bullpen session
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Liberatore threw a bullpen session ahead of Wednesday's action against the Orioles, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.
Following last weekend's start against the Red Sox, Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said Liberatore wasn't likely to start Saturday versus the Cubs. However, the left-hander's bullpen session could indicate a change of plan, since it wouldn't make much sense to have a regular reliever make himself unavailable on a day during which St. Louis had to complete Tuesday's suspended game in addition to Wednesday's regularly scheduled contest. It remains to be seen who actually starts for the Cardinals on Saturday, but Liberatore seems to still be in the mix, at least.
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Cardinals' Matthew Liberatore: Not expected to start this weekend
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Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said Monday that Liberatore is unlikely to start Saturday versus the Cubs, John Denton of MLB.com reports.
The Cards have gone back and forth on the best role for Liberatore, and the team's brain trust seems to have now settled on deploying the young left-hander out of the bullpen, where he had some success early on in the season. Andre Pallante and Zack Thompson are considered the leading candidates to start Saturday.
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Cardinals' Matthew Liberatore: Role now being reconsidered
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Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol conceded after Liberatore's start Sunday versus the Red Sox that the team is now considering moving the lefty back to the bullpen, Lynn Worthy of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.
Marmol had said previously that the club wanted to commit to Liberatore's role, which it did Friday in saying the southpaw would start Sunday and remain in the rotation indefinitely. However, following another unsuccessful, abbreviated start (three-plus innings, four runs), the Cards are now reconsidering the plan for Liberatore. If Liberatore does return to a relief role -- which would appear likely at this point -- it's not clear who St. Louis would slide into the rotation in his place.
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Cardinals' Matthew Liberatore: Continues to struggle
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Liberatore (1-2) suffered the loss Sunday against the Red Sox, allowing four runs on six hits and one walk over three innings. He struck out three.
Liberatore struggled through three-plus innings Sunday, allowing a first inning solo homer to former teammate Tyler O'Neill. Liberatore started the fourth with the game still at 2-0 , but he was pulled after allowing a run-scoring double to Romy Gonzalez, who later scored to add a fourth run to Liberatore's line. The 24-year-old lefty has struggled over his last four appearances, including three starts, allowing 11 runs over 10.1 innings. With the return of Steven Matz looming, Liberatore's stay in the Cardinals' rotation appears to be coming to an end.
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Cardinals' Matthew Liberatore: Slated to start Sunday
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Liberatore will start Sunday's game against the Red Sox in St. Louis.
Liberatore will start for the third time in four appearances, filling the rotation spot that remains open while Steven Matz (back) is on the injured list. Though the Cardinals will keep Liberatore in a starting role for now, he likely won't have an especially long leash if he struggles Sunday. In both of his other two starts this season, Liberatore has compiled a 6.43 ERA and 1.43 WHIP across seven innings.
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Cardinals' Matthew Liberatore: Decision coming on role
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Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said Tuesday that the team would like to declare a set role for Liberatore in the coming days, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.
Liberatore began the season in the bullpen and pitched well, collecting a 2.76 ERA and 10:8 K:BB over 16.1 innings. Two of his last three appearances have been starts as he fills in for the injured Steven Matz (back) and the results have been mixed. Matz looks to be several weeks away from a return, so the Cards could either commit to Liberatore filling that role or shifting him back to the bullpen where he's had success.
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Cardinals' Matthew Liberatore: Unimpressive in no-decision
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Liberatore allowed four runs on five hits and two walks while striking out one batter over 3.1 innings in a no-decision against the Angels on Monday.
Liberatore hurled two scoreless frames before the Angels tagged him for four runs in the third, with the final two tallies coming on a Kevin Pillar two-run homer. The southpaw departed in line for the loss, but St. Louis' offense eventually heated up to take him off the hook. This was Liberatore's second start of the season, and it came primarily as a result of Steven Matz landing on the injured list due to a back injury. Matz isn't expected back soon, but it wouldn't be surprising if the Cardinals put Liberatore back in the bullpen given his poor results Monday.
Cardinals' Matthew Liberatore: Set for start Monday
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Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said Liberatore will start Monday's series opener against the Angels in Anaheim, John Denton of MLB.com reports.
After he had worked out of the bullpen all season, Liberatore was on a limited pitch count when he was called upon to take over the injured Steven Matz's (back) spot in the rotation last Sunday versus the White Sox. Liberatore struck out five and allowed one earned run over 3.2 innings in a no-decision against Chicago before shifting back to the bullpen for this weekend's series in Milwaukee. He recorded just one out while allowing two earned runs in Friday's 11-2 loss, so Liberatore will be taking the hill on two days' rest Monday. Expect Liberatore to once again operate on a pitch limit, making him an unappealing streaming target.
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Cardinals' Matthew Liberatore: Available in relief
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Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said Thursday that Liberatore will be available out of the bullpen for the team's series this weekend in Milwaukee, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.
Liberatore remains a candidate to draw a start early next week, but he will sit with the relievers this weekend in case he's needed. The left-hander allowed one run over 3.2 innings in a spot start versus the White Sox in his last appearance and before that held a 2.76 ERA in 12 relief appearances.
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Cardinals' Matthew Liberatore: Effective in rare start
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Liberatore pitched 3.2 innings, giving up one run on three hits while striking out five batters in Sunday's 5-1 loss to the White Sox. He did not factor into the decision.
Liberatore was called upon to make his first start of the season Sunday, and he did not disappoint. The southpaw allowed a double to Paul DeJong, who later came around to score on a sacrifice fly by Bryan Ramos, in the second inning, accounting for all the damage on Liberatore's line. The 24-year-old's 50 total pitches were his highest total of the season while the 3.2 innings on the mound set a new high for an outing this season. Operating primarily as a bullpen option in 2024, Liberatore now owns a 2.70 ERA and 1.05 WHIP with 15 strikeouts over 20 innings in 13 appearances, including Sunday's start.
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Cardinals' Matthew Liberatore: Getting spot start Sunday
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Liberatore will start Sunday's game against the White Sox, John Denton of MLB.com reports.
All 12 of Liberatore's appearances this season have come in relief, so while he did throw three innings in an April 28 appearance, the Cardinals are most likely treating Sunday's contest as a bullpen day. However, it's possible Liberatore could fill a more traditional starting role moving forward if he pitches well Sunday, as the Cardinals have an opening while Steven Matz (back) is on the 15-day injured list.
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Cardinals' Matthew Liberatore: Nabs win in matinee
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Liberatore (1-1) pitched a perfect inning and struck out two batters to earn the win in Game 1 of Tuesday's doubleheader versus the Tigers.
Liberatore bounced back from his first loss of the season Sunday with a clean outing in the eighth inning Tuesday. The Cardinals then rallied ahead in the ninth, and Ryan Helsley closed the door for a save. Liberatore has been solid with a 2.93 ERA, 1.17 WHIP and 9:8 K:BB through 15.1 innings over 11 appearances as a multi-inning relief option this season. Tuesday also marked the first time in six appearances he avoided walking a batter.
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Cardinals' Matthew Liberatore: Takes extra-innings loss
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Liberatore (0-1) allowed three runs (two earned) on three hits and a walk over three innings, taking the extra-innings loss versus the Mets on Sunday. He did not record a strikeout.
Liberatore was called on for a long-relief assignment that began in the eighth inning and ended with a walk-off home run by Mark Vientos in the 11th. This was Liberatore's longest outing of the season, and it came in a game during which the Cardinals' bullpen had multiple high-leverage relievers unavailable due to recent workloads. The southpaw now has a 3.14 ERA, 1.26 WHIP and 7:8 K:BB across 14.1 innings over 10 appearances this season. Liberatore's history as a starter will keep him in a long-relief role unless the Cardinals feel the need to swap him out for a fresher arm heading into Monday's game versus the Tigers.
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Cardinals' Matthew Liberatore: Not available Sunday
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Liberatore will be unavailable with an illness for the third straight day Sunday against the Diamondbacks, John Denton of MLB.com reports.
Liberatore was sent home Thursday with an illness that had him nauseous and will not be available to pitch against the Diamondbacks. The reliever, who currently has a 3.52 ERA, will reconvene with the team Monday as they travel to Oakland to face the Athletics, though his availability to pitch in that series is still unknown.
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Cardinals' Matthew Liberatore: Moving to bullpen
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Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said Friday that Liberatore will work out of the bullpen to begin the season, Lynn Worthy of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.
The 24-year-old was attempting to win a spot in St. Louis' season-opening rotation, but Zack Thompson will instead fill in while Sonny Gray (hamstring) is on the injured list. Liberatore started in 11 of his 22 big-league appearances last season and could work as a swingman again in 2024.
