Carpenter will start at third base and will bat seventh Monday against the Cubs, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.

EDGE Analysis

Carpenter was on the bench for the last two games, likely just as a means of hitting the reset button after he slashed .116/.367/.209 over his previous 15 games. While the 34-year-old still boasts a patient eye at the plate (13.4 percent walk rate since 2019), his power production and strikeout rate have been trending in undesirable directions over the past two seasons. He's struck out in 26.8 percent of his plate appearances and has posted a .156 ISO during that two-season stretch, both well off his career marks of 19.9 percent and .191, respectively.

Carpenter went 1-for-3 with a solo home run in Friday's 4-1 loss to the Cubs.

EDGE Analysis

Carpenter was the only Cardinal to manage a hit off Cubs starter Yu Darvish, and that hit left the yard in the sixth inning. It's the second homer of the year for Carpenter, to go with 14 RBI and 14 runs scored across 27 games. He's slashing .181/.340/.289 through 103 plate appearances.

Carpenter will bat sixth and start at third base Wednesday against the Royals, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.

EDGE Analysis

Carpenter was originally set to be on the bench, but he'll join the starting nine with Dexter Fowler sitting out the game in protest of the recent police shooting of Jacob Blake.

Carpenter is not starting Wednesday against the Royals.

EDGE Analysis

Carpenter has started 13 consecutive games for the Cardinals, going 9-for-41 with one home run, 10 RBI and a 7:15 BB:K during that span. Brad Miller is serving as the DH and hitting cleanup in place of Carpenter on Wednesday.

Matt Carpenter went 2-for-7 with a grand slam during Wednesday's doubleheader against the Cubs.

EDGE Analysis

The 34-year-old started the twin bill off strong with the 410-foot grand slam during the first inning of the matinee, and he was thrown out at second base during the nightcap while attempting to stretch his single into a double. Carpenter has a .238/.304/.357 slash line with one homer, 11 RBI and 13 strikeouts through 46 plate appearances this season.

Carpenter went 2-for-4 with an RBI single and a double in a loss to the Cubs on Tuesday.

EDGE Analysis

Carpenter worked out of the cleanup spot and generated one of three multi-hit efforts on the night for the Cardinals. The veteran has hit safely in four of St. Louis' first six games since the team resumed play Saturday, and he's compiled five RBI over that span despite Tuesday's two-bagger being his only extra-base hit during that span.

Carpenter went 1-for-4 with a two-run single in a loss to the White Sox on Sunday.

EDGE Analysis

Carpenter prevented the indignity of a shutout for the Cardinals by plating Tommy Edman and Paul Goldschmidt with a sixth-inning single for the only two Cardinals runs of the day. The veteran had a productive weekend against the White Sox despite going just 2-for-11 in three games, as he drove in four runs overall during that stretch.

Carpenter, who's filled the designated hitter role for the first five games of the season, is projected to shift to third base as part of the domino effect of Paul DeJong's (illness) absence, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

EDGE Analysis

Carpenter has started 635 career games at the hot corner, so the move, which is necessitated by Tommy Edman shifting over to shortstop in DeJong's stead, should be a good fit and should continue to keep the veteran's bat in the lineup on an everyday basis. Carpenter is slashing .200/.294/.267 over his first 17 plate appearances, but he should have plenty of opportunities to improve on those numbers for the time being without having to be overly concerned about a benching.

Carpenter is not in the lineup Wednesday against the Twins, FOX Sports Midwest reports.

EDGE Analysis

Carpenter had been in the lineup for each of the Cardinals' first four games, all of which came against right-handed pitchers. He'll hit the bench for the first time Wednesday with a southpaw (Rich Hill) on the mound for Minnesota. Rangel Ravelo gets his first start of the season as the designated hitter in his absence.

Carpenter, who slugged a two-run homer during Friday's intrasquad game, was actually most satisfied with a long out he made because of the quality of his improved swing, Matt Rogers of MLB.com reports. "For me, 100 percent, it was the swing on the backdoor cutter from Miles [Mikolas]," Carpenter said. "For me to be able to take that swing on that pitch is right where I want to be. That pitch, to be able to stay on that pitch and be able to hit in the gap and get a chance for an extra-base hit -- I was way happier with that swing."

EDGE Analysis

The veteran is considered a strong candidate to handle designated-hitter duties during the coming season, and he operated in that role Friday while hitting fifth. Carpenter spent considerable time this offseason working on his swing and looking to find his "hitting identity" after a pair of uneven seasons at the plate in 2018 and 2019 that have featured the two highest strikeout rates (23.4 and 26.2 percent) of his career. Specifically, Carpenter has been looking to hit to all fields more consistently in a manner akin to prior seasons, and he was encouragingly able to accomplish that both Friday and earlier in summer camp as well. The 34-year-old is also embracing the idea of primarily slotting in at DH, remarking Friday he's "more than willing to do it and learn it and adapt to it."