ST. LOUIS -- As the St. Louis Cardinals began spring training, Tommy Pham was widely expected to start the regular season as the club's fourth outfielder behind Dexter Fowler, Randal Grichuk and Stephen Piscotty. With Jose Martinez hitting .378 this spring and officially clinching a spot on the major league roster Saturday, though, Pham will have a different fate. The 29-year-old outfielder was optioned to Triple-A Memphis on Saturday morning.
Pham, the Cardinals' opening day left fielder last season, had a rather rough spring. In 43 Grapefruit League at-bats, he hit .209 with just two extra-base hits, though he did steal four bases. Pham is a career .245 hitter and has hit 14 homers over parts of three seasons with the Cardinals.
With Pham's assignment to the minor leagues, the Cardinals have 41 players remaining on their spring training roster.
