JUPITER, Fla. — There was no hesitation from Yadier Molina. The St. Louis Cardinals catcher stepped up and made the play.

Molina executed the maneuver that got him injured, a sweeping tag at the plate, saving a run in his spring training debut.

“I was ready, I wasn’t thinking about anything,” Molina said after playing three innings against the Miami Marlins on Wednesday. “I just tried to get the guy and everything went right.”

Molina wore a splint to protect his surgically repaired thumb and played three innings, but did not bat after being listed ninth in the lineup. He was on deck when Jedd Gyorko was caught stealing to end the second but said he’d have gone to the plate with orders to just keep taking.

“Today was a good test and yeah, I feel good,” Molina said. “But we have to wait for tomorrow and see how I keep progressing.”

The seven-time All-Star and eight-time Gold Glove winner is coming off two thumb operations.

Molina injured his left thumb making a sweeping tag on the Chicago Cubs’ Anthony Rizzo on Sept. 20. He underwent operations in October and mid-December.

“Yadi did that play perfectly, and the slide wasn’t a dirty slide,” Matheny said.