The Cardinals got good news on Masyn Winn’s troublesome knee Monday afternoon. The shortstop’s second MRI of the season showed improvement from his previous scan, according to St. Louis Post-Dispatch’s Derrick Goold.
Manager Oli Marmol said there’s no risk of further injury if Winn keeps playing through the discomfort. The 22-year-old may need offseason surgery, but he won’t miss any time down the stretch.
That’s huge news for a Cardinals team still fighting for a playoff spot.
Winn’s been dealing with knee issues since the All-Star break. He got an injection during the break to manage the pain and had started every game since – until this past weekend when he sat out the final two games against Tampa Bay.
The timing raised some concerns, especially with the Cardinals in the thick of the pennant race.
“It doesn’t feel great, obviously, and I would have played today if it felt good, but we’re going to get some testing done and see what it shows,” Winn said (h/t Redbird Rants). “I got an MRI earlier in the year, and it showed a little something. I’m assuming this one’s going to show a little more, but I don’t think that changes my outlook.”
Turns out Winn was wrong about the MRI showing more damage. The scan actually revealed improvement, and he’s back in the lineup Monday as St. Louis opens a three-game series with Pittsburgh.
As for Masyn Winn, MRI showed improvement from last month. Cardinals believe he is not risking anything for the 2026 season. The team will manage it on a day-by-day/tolerance basis. #STLCards https://t.co/NWzdFXi1lK
— Katie Woo (@katiejwoo) August 25, 2025
The way Winn sees it, surgery can wait.
“It very well might [require surgery] and that’s something we’ll look at at the end of the year, but right now I want to be out there on the field,” Winn said. “We’ve still got a chance to make the playoffs and play some good ball, so I want to be out there and playing shortstop as much as I can.”
Now it’s just about pain management. The Cardinals will handle Winn on a day-to-day basis, but the medical staff isn’t worried about him causing long-term damage by playing through it.
That’s exactly what you want to hear when you’re trying to make a playoff push. Winn knows what’s at stake and wants to be on the field with his teammates as long as they’re still in the race.
