With eight days before they open the season at Busch Stadium against Pittsburgh, the Cardinals started populating their alternate-site camp in Springfield, Mo., with a handful of pitchers.
They'll be keeping the position players in St. Louis for a little longer.
They still need a lineup for the the big-league squad to play against.
The Cardinals announced their first reassignments of "Summer Camp" on Thursday morning, sending lefties Rob Kaminsky and Zack Thompson along with catcher Ivan Herrera and righthander Seth Elledge to the Springfield roster.
Kaminsky has an opt-out in his contract approaching that would allow him to become a free agent if he did not get an assignment with the Cardinals.