The St. Louis Cardinals are on the verge of getting Nolan Gorman back in the lineup. Barring a setback, Nolan Gorman is expected to return when the Cardinals play the Philadelphia Phillies Friday night, according to MLB.com. Gorman last played on Aug. 12 before going on the 10-day IL with a back injury.

Gorman has been managing his back injury since 2020. The Cardinals second baseman hurt himself while lifting weights three years ago. The 23-year-old has been forced to perform a stretching routine before games because of the ailment.

“Pretty much as soon as I get here, especially on these [day games], it’s even more important to make sure I get everything moving right,” Gorman said, via MLB.com. “A lot of the stuff I’ve been doing is stuff I’ve done all year to try and stay on top of it. Now, I’ve just maybe got to do it even more.”

Gorman has been one of St. Louis' most productive players in what's been a lost season for the Cardinals. In 104 games, he's second on the team with 24 home runs and 67 RBI. Gorman is hitting .241/.328/.487.

With the Cardinals long out of contention, St. Louis' focus for the remainder of the 2023 season will be on the team's young players, like Gorman. The second baseman is only in his second MLB season. He has 38 home runs in 193 career games.

The Cardinals started three players who are younger than 24 years old in Tuesday's loss against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Masyn Winn, St. Louis' top-ranked prospect who will play in the middle infield alongside Gorman, has four hits in his first 18 at-bats in the big leagues.