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Fermín has become a fixture in the Cardinals’ lineup, splitting his time between left field and third base, but he’ll get a breather in this one. Blaze Jordan will take his place at the hot corner and will bat ninth against Cubs’ right-hander Edward Cabrera on Sunday.

Fermín doubled, singled and drew three walks while also adding his fourth stolen base of the season. The 27-year-old has provided some value of the bench, but he shouldn’t be on a fantasy one — and certainly not in a starting lineup — with a slash of .243/.311/.364.

Fermín typically comes off as a significantly less talented version of Luis Arraez, but every once in a while, the 27-year-old makes it worth wondering if there’s something more in store. Tonight’s homer was one of those moments, as it came with an 81.3-mph bat speed that he just doesn’t seem like he should be capable of. Fermín has been adequate in hitting .253/.317/.385 in his part-time role this year, but he might be a lot more interesting if he just started swinging hard all of the time.

Cardinals manager Oli Marmol seemed to want nothing to do with Fermín at the beginning of the season, as the utilityman had zero plate appearances through six games and two through 12 games. However, Fermín has been decent enough when given the chance to play, hitting .277/.328/.402 in 123 plate appearances. Fermín would likely be stretched thin as a regular, but as a part-timer, his ability to make contact and handle several positions is pretty useful.

No word on the reason for the move. Thomas Saggese takes over in left field to face Guardians starter Joey Cantillo.

Statcast says the single through the left side of the infield left his bat at 111.4 mph. We’re guessing the calibrations were a little off there, though, given that Fermín has never eclipsed 105.7 mph as a major leaguer. Still, Fermín is pretty interesting as perhaps the Cardinals’ best leadoff option with Brandon Donovan gone. The 26-year-old hit .283/.377/.417 in 70 major league plate appearances last season and came in at .300/.428/.485 in Triple-A. He might not be a mixed-league guy even if he does wind up playing regularly, but he’s an NL-only sleeper.

Making his first start since his latest recall on Wednesday, Fermín hit a 356-foot double down the left-field line that would have been a homer in 21 ballparks. He also had a well-struck lineout on his other ball in play. He has an .817 OPS in 59 plate appearances this season, but the Cardinals are still far more interested in giving at-bats to Nolan Gorman (.669 OPS) and Thomas Saggese (.651 OPS).

Fermín was just sent to Triple-A on Monday, but with Willson Contreras (shoulder) landing on the IL, the Cardinals were able to bring him right back to the MLB team. The 26-year-old will operate as depth all across the diamond.

Fermín gets demoted for the second time in four days to make room for Nolan Arenado. The 26-year-old is currently a better player than Thomas Saggese and probably Nolan Gorman, too, but the Cardinals just don’t see much upside with him.

The 26-year-old infielder drew a rare start in place of Brendan Donovan on Sunday and made the most of the opportunity. He smacked an RBI single off of Jose Quintana in the second inning that extended the Cardinals’ advantage to 2-0. Fermín then swiped second base on a double steal with Jordan Walker but was ultimately cut down attempting to steal home later in the inning. He has done a nice job so far during his time with the Cardinals, hitting .298/.389/.404 with a homer, five RBI and a pair of stolen bases in 61 plate appearances.

Fermín returns to St. Louis’ middle infielder mix with defensive wizard Masyn Winn shut down for the rest of the season due to a lingering left knee issue that will require surgery. The 26-year-old figures to split time with Thomas Saggese at shortstop over the final two weeks.

With Brendan Donovan returning from the injured list on Friday there was simply no longer room for Fermín on the Cardinals’ bench. The 26-year-old has hit .273/.360/.386 with one homer, four RBI and one stolen base in 51 plate appearances with the Cardinals on the season.