More from Moss: Cardinals hope to re-sign power-hitting first baseman

St. Louis Cardinals General Manager John Mozeliak was bullish on Brandon Moss in the offseason and remains in the same mode as the season matures into its fifth month.

Mozeliak, in fact, said Friday that he would be open to negotiating a contract extension for Moss, a first baseman/outfielder who is batting .264 with 18 home runs and 43 RBIs.

“I would certainly be open at some point to discussing that,” Mozeliak said. “I don’t feel like the timing right now is ideal. I know his agents (Sam and Seth Levinson) very well. I certainly feel like, from a player’s standpoint, he’s done a very nice job for us. I haven’t really drawn any conclusions, but I’d be certainly open to having Brandon back.”

St. Louis traded for an injured Moss, 32, on July 30, 2015. A bad hip contributed to Moss batting just .250 with four home runs and eight RBIs in 51 games.

Still, the Cardinals believed that with a healthy offseason, Moss would be fine and provide a needed power source. They re-signed him to a one-year, $8.25 million contract.

“I feel like we were always excited when we got Mr. Moss last year,” Mozeliak said. “The perception of how he performed didn’t live up to maybe how we advertised him. But then this year, he has. Overall, he’s been a great fit on this club and a great teammate. We would certainly like to keep him around.”

Holliday hits fifth

Slumping left fielder Matt Holliday was dropped to the No. 5 spot in the order Friday. It was Holliday’s first game hitting fifth since June 30, 2013.

“I think it’s more (about) maximizing Moss,” Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said. “When Brandon is finding the barrel of the bat, the ball carries for him. And splitting up some of our lefties. You’re playing a team that has that many left-handers in their bullpen, you have to realize that if we can put a little more distance between some of the lefties ...”

Holliday is batting just .236 with a .312 on-base percentage, although he has 18 home runs and 59 RBIs. He needs 15 hits for 2,000 in his career.

Asked to evaluate Holliday’s season, Matheny treaded the middle of the road.

“I really haven’t put this big evaluation together,” Matheny said. “We’ve seen him very good, and we’ve seen him be productive at times. I think he’s bought into driving the ball and maybe at times sacrificed a little of the average. The power and production have been good. We’ve seen him do a nice job in the outfield.

“I think there have been a lot of positives. I think there are a few things he would like to see done a little bit differently and more consistently, but that can go for every single guy out here.”

Walden throwing bullpens

Reliever Jordan Walden hasn’t pitched since April 29, 2015, but he threw his fifth bullpen Friday and hopes he can work in a game at some point in September.

“I’m shooting for September. I finally have some hope,” Walden said. “I threw a good bullpen (July 29) and that kind of gave me a boost of confidence. It’s been a long road with a lot of ups and downs. I think I’m going in the right direction.”

Walden has been dealing with a shoulder injury and a strained lat. He’s been working out in his native Dallas.

Injury update

Mozeliak said other injured Cardinals are on their individual paths to return to the roster at some point in the final two months of the season.

• Shortstop Aledmys Diaz (broken right thumb) is being given this week off and will report to the Cardinals’ spring-training complex in Jupiter, Fla., next week to resume working out.

• Catcher Brayan Pena (left knee) and right-hander Lance Lynn (Tommy John) are in Jupiter. Pena is catching Lynn’s bullpens, and Mozeliak doesn’t rule out Lynn pitching in 2016.

• Left-hander Tyler Lyons (stress reaction in right knee) is expected to be sidelined for about four weeks.

• Closer Trevor Rosenthal (shoulder inflammation) is about five to seven days away from beginning a throwing program.

Mozeliak doesn’t feel like the Cardinals have had more injuries this year than any other season.

“I’m sure there have been (seasons like this) because it seems like we talk about injuries all the time,” Mozeliak said.

This story was originally published August 5, 2016 at 8:47 PM with the headline "More from Moss: Cardinals hope to re-sign power-hitting first baseman."