Well, it’s open season, and I don’t mean deer hunting. Major League Baseball free agents are in the market for homes, i.e teams that will open their wallets and welcome them in. Turning human beings into price tags can be a little degrading, but some players are probably looking for that final deal that will determine their salary for the remainder of their careers. Players need homes as much as teams need personnel to make a winning team in 2024.
General Manager John Mozeliak has not consulted me yet, so I’m not holding my breath for my picks. Athletic sports writer Katie Woo likes Eduardo Rodrigues and Jordan Montgomery as likely signings. I remember Rodriguez as a high ceiling, but injury prone. Montgomery I like for reasons stated below. Here is my assessment of the available pitchers and their fit for the Cardinals.
Two Japanese pitchers are going to break records for contracts as well as wins and ERA: Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto. They will be number 1 starting pitchers on most teams that can afford them. They offer good resumes, Ohtani in the Major Leagues and Yamamoto in Japanese baseball. They have great potential to exhaust team payrolls as well as exponentially upgrade any pitching staff in the Major Leagues.
Let’s just say he St.Louis Cardinals should stay out of that market, if they want to hire two quality starters in the off season. They can afford what the Katie Woo calls Second and Third Tier pitchers. In the Second Tier are Jordan Montgomery, Sonny Gray, Eduardo Rodrigues and Marcus Stroman. Three of these have something in common: previous season-ending injuries. Personally I think the risk of giving big contracts for fragile arms is not worth it. The Cardinals badly need dependable pitchers to solidify a strong offensive team that could not keep up with the incredible collapsing pitching staff in 2023.
Conveniently the fourth Second Tier pitcher was the one stalwart of the Cardinals’ pitching staff in 2023. He had a brief turn on the disabled list, but not the career-threatening injuries of the other three. It was heart-breaking to see him and Jack Flaherty squandered on pitchers with uncertain futures last year. None of them will fill the holes in the Cardinals’ starting rotation. Montgomery will. He is a dependable left hander. Sign him up.
A dependable right hand pitcher in the Third Tier is also a former Cardinal: Michael Wacha. Wacha has traveled around the country since leaving the Cardinals, making stops in New York (Mets), Tampa Bay (Rays), Boston (Red Sox) and San Diego (Padres). We used to call players like him “journeymen,” but Wacha is only 32. and apparently found himself in Tampa Bay. Last season with the Padres he was 14-4 with a 3.22 Era. He could be a number one starter on some clubs, and he has a healthy arm.
Tier Four has a lot of injury-prone starters: Lucas Giolito, Jack Flaherty, and Clayton Kershaw. Again, not worth the risk. Seth Lugo has more experience as a relief pitcher, although he started effectively for the Padres in 2023. Shota Imanaga another Japanese neophyte, will cost a Japanese league posting fee, sliding from 20 percent to 15 percent of the contract. That makes him more expensive and untested in the Major Leagues. Still, he would be a good Tier Three signing.
Michael Wacha is a known quantity and he would return to the Cardinals as a better pitcher, attributed to his experience in Tampa Bay. His last two seasons he went 25-6, with a 3.32 ERA in 2022 and 3.22 in 2023. These have been his best years, since he pitched in St. Louis in 2018. So I’m campaigning for another Cardinal alumnus to go with Jordan Montgomery. Second choice would be Shota Imanaga.
John Mozeliak, these choices are for you.