PITTSBURGH • The catcher the Cardinals signed to help alleviate the workload on Yadier Molina, especially early in the season, won’t be available to do so for several weeks.
Brayan Pena will have knee surgery this week to remove a piece of cartilage loose in his left knee, and the veteran backup will start the regular season on the disabled list. For the second consecutive year, the Cardinals will play the first game of baseball’s regular season, opening Sunday at noon against the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park. For the third day out of the previous four they had to rewrite their planned roster due to an injury.