St. Louis Cardinals 2022

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pruman91

Paducah, Ky

Daniel Guerrero
Unlike the NFL or NBA where recently drafted or signed players typically play at the league’s highest level within the same calendar year, the timing for when a baseball prospect can impact a big-league team can often require some patience.
Within the Cardinals’ farm system, some talent in the lower minors might be a couple of years away from getting to the majors, but their progress is worth watching.
These are some of those players to keep tabs on:

All 8 players listed in the article are 19 years old or younger.........Interesting read on the future players ...................
 
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pruman91

Paducah, Ky

Jeff Gordon
Let the spending begin.
The free agent marketplace is open and slugger Aaron Judge, pitchers Jacob deGrom and Justin Verlander plus shortstops Trea Turner, Xander Bogaerts, Carlos Correa and Dansby Swanson are the headlining assets.
Unlike past winters, bidding this time around will be brisk – particularly for the shortstops. The pandemic is in the rear view mirrors. Revenues are back to previous levels or higher.
Franchises that have languished as also-rans see the expanded playoff bracket as an opportunity to compete. The Philadelphia Phillies won the National League pennant as the last team in on this side of the league.

Although the Cardinals expected to take on additional payroll this winter, don’t expect this team to join the frenzied bidding on shortstops.
The Cardinals already have a decent keystone with Tommy Edman and Brendan Donovan, two good fielders who add speed to the offense. Young power hitter Nolan Gorman can play second base, although the new anti-shift rules will further expose his lack of range.
This team is stuck with Paul DeJong, who has more than $11 million coming this year in salary plus his 2023 buyout. Hence the team’s willingness to give him one more chance.
It’s that or pay him all that money to try out elsewhere or stay home.
And then there is dynamic shortstop prospect Masyn Winn, who could get his first big league at bats at some point next season if he continues his rapid climb up the ladder.
His strong showing at the Arizona Fall League (.294 batting average, .407 on-base percentage, nine steals in 10 tries) amplified his potential.
Given all of those factors, committing $300 million-plus on a shortstop right now doesn’t make sense to management. In a year, once DeJong is finally off the books and Winn is further into his development, John Mozeliak and Co. will have a clearer picture of where the team stands at shortstop.
 
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So all the buzz seems to be that we're not going to commit a bunch of money on one of the big shortstops, and we don't like to commit to long term deals for pitchers. So, where is the increased salary going to go? Just Contreras and then a couple smaller deals? That'd probably be a relatively small salary bump. We could use an outfielder but there aren't any realistic options that'd be a big splash. The only other thing I can think is maybe Rizzo or something like that, as a DH?

Also, anyone think we'd bring back Carp to DH? He really fixed his swing and I think the restrictions on the shift will help him a ton.
 
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viking6888

Greeley, Colorado
#2,082      

pruman91

Paducah, Ky

Daniel Guerrero
Delvin Perez — a 23-year-old shortstop and former first-round draft pick by the Cardinals — was one of 16 minor-leaguers to elect free agency on Friday. The moves were listed on the various Cardinals’ minor-league affiliate transaction pages.
As a 17-year-old from Puerto Rico, Perez was the No. 23 overall pick in the 2016 MLB draft. He reached the Class AAA level for the first time in his career this past season and played in six seasons within the Cardinals’ farm system. In his minor-league career, he batted .250 with a .322 on-base percentage and a .322 slugging percentage.
Perez was ranked as high as No. 8 on some draft prospects lists, but a positive test for a performance-enhancing drug that he took to help him add weight before the draft led him to slip down the board far enough for the Cardinals to take him at No. 23. He received a $2.2-million bonus.

In 2017, Baseball America ranked Perez as the third-best prospect in the Cardinals system and, three years later, he was rated as having the best infield arm. But offensive struggles this past season and the rise of another shortstop prospect in Masyn Winn added obstacles in a potential path to the majors for the Puerto Rico native.
 
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This link explains it more:


TLDR,

We probably have around $20 million to spend with the budget. I've seen elsewhere we can increase salary with some other roster moves by maybe another $5 million or so. Not super encouraging.
 
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pruman91

Paducah, Ky

Ben Frederickson
Inflation is everywhere.
Gas pump. Grocery store. Bullpen.
Yes, it’s true.
MLB teams this offseason are tripping over one another to throw big paydays at “proven” relievers, handing out whopping contracts to volatile arms, driving prices up, up, up along the way.
The Astros gave 32-year-old Rafael Montero three years and $34.5 million after he helped Houston’s electric bullpen lock up a World Series championship. He had a 2.37 ERA this season, the first time in the right-hander’s eight-year MLB career that it was lower than 5.52 in a season in which he had at least 25 appearances. That’s some serious trust he can repeat what he did in 2022, or at least come close.

The Padres gave nearly 32-year-old first-year major-leaguer Robert Suarez five years and $46 million, with the chance to opt out after three seasons and chase a bigger deal then. What are the chances he continues to defy the league well enough to use that opt-out clause?
And then there are the Mets, who gave All-Star closer Edwin Diaz five years and $102 million, making him the recipient of a record deal. He’s elite. But still ...“I was communicating with a number of agents yesterday,” MLB Network’s Jon Morosi said Monday during a TV hit. “And the agents were telling me, ‘Wow, the relief pitching market is excellent right now.’ When you’ve got Suarez, who didn’t have any major-league experience before last season, getting a five-year deal with an opt-out after three? And then Montero, who struggled in 2021, and you consider he had an ERA above 6.00 a year ago at this time, and he gets a lucrative three-year deal? I’ve had a number of agents tell me this is a really good offseason to have a high-leverage reliever as a free agent.”


Translation: It’s a really risky offseason to be betting significant money on bullpen pieces.
 
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Illwinsagain

Cary, IL

Ben Frederickson
Inflation is everywhere.
Gas pump. Grocery store. Bullpen.
Yes, it’s true.
MLB teams this offseason are tripping over one another to throw big paydays at “proven” relievers, handing out whopping contracts to volatile arms, driving prices up, up, up along the way.
The Astros gave 32-year-old Rafael Montero three years and $34.5 million after he helped Houston’s electric bullpen lock up a World Series championship. He had a 2.37 ERA this season, the first time in the right-hander’s eight-year MLB career that it was lower than 5.52 in a season in which he had at least 25 appearances. That’s some serious trust he can repeat what he did in 2022, or at least come close.

The Padres gave nearly 32-year-old first-year major-leaguer Robert Suarez five years and $46 million, with the chance to opt out after three seasons and chase a bigger deal then. What are the chances he continues to defy the league well enough to use that opt-out clause?
And then there are the Mets, who gave All-Star closer Edwin Diaz five years and $102 million, making him the recipient of a record deal. He’s elite. But still ...“I was communicating with a number of agents yesterday,” MLB Network’s Jon Morosi said Monday during a TV hit. “And the agents were telling me, ‘Wow, the relief pitching market is excellent right now.’ When you’ve got Suarez, who didn’t have any major-league experience before last season, getting a five-year deal with an opt-out after three? And then Montero, who struggled in 2021, and you consider he had an ERA above 6.00 a year ago at this time, and he gets a lucrative three-year deal? I’ve had a number of agents tell me this is a really good offseason to have a high-leverage reliever as a free agent.”


Translation: It’s a really risky offseason to be betting significant money on bullpen pieces.
It seems that the bullpen is a crap shoot (more than other positions). Years that look like the bullpen will be a strength, throw a lot of money at it, things go wrong. Other times, when it's filled with a bunch of unknowns, some rookies are lights out. JMHO
 
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It seems that the bullpen is a crap shoot (more than other positions). Years that look like the bullpen will be a strength, throw a lot of money at it, things go wrong. Other times, when it's filled with a bunch of unknowns, some rookies are lights out. JMHO
Yeah, more and more I think the way to do it is to bring in a mix of proven veterans and solid young arms and continually assess who is doing well. I do think it makes sense to spend a little (emphasis on little) more on a proven arm than a complete question mark, or a "bounce-back" candidate. For example last season we could have re-signed Garcia, who signed with the Padres for 2 yrs/$7MM, or signed Tepera who signed for 2 yrs/$14 MM. Instead we signed VerHagen at 2 yrs/$5.5 MM, who at -0.8 WAR was clearly the worst value proposition despite being the cheapest.

I would generally not be in favor of spending $15-20 MM/yr on a reliever.
 
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Yeah, more and more I think the way to do it is to bring in a mix of proven veterans and solid young arms and continually assess who is doing well. I do think it makes sense to spend a little (emphasis on little) more on a proven arm than a complete question mark, or a "bounce-back" candidate. For example last season we could have re-signed Garcia, who signed with the Padres for 2 yrs/$7MM, or signed Tepera who signed for 2 yrs/$14 MM. Instead we signed VerHagen at 2 yrs/$5.5 MM, who at -0.8 WAR was clearly the worst value proposition despite being the cheapest.

I would generally not be in favor of spending $15-20 MM/yr on a reliever.
So so many of the reliever FA vets have failed.
I can't say what the answer is. Keep trying I guess.
 
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So so many of the reliever FA vets have failed.
I can't say what the answer is. Keep trying I guess.
That's true of last offseason, but we've had successes too. The aforementioned Luis Garcia. Pat Neshak. Randy Choate. Matt Belisle. Edward Mujica. Ryan Franklin. Jason Isringhausen.

It's absolutely true that relief pitcher success is difficult to predict. Relievers often go from dominant to liability in the span of a single season. Our current FO position on this seems to be that past success provides absolutely zero indication of future success, which is why they'd opt to sign VerHagen for less than Garcia and for far less than Tepera. I think that's defensible, but also tend to think prior success does mean something, even if not a whole lot. I'd have re-signed Garcia for the extra $750K AAV. This time around I'd love to see us go after Matt Moore, Adam Ottavino or Cory Knebel if the price is right. I think one those guys would complement our high velocity guys like Helsley, Cabrera and Hicks.
 
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pruman91

Paducah, Ky

Derrick Goold


Sporting a new cutter and a brand new season and league to use it, lefty Connor Thomas spent the fall rewriting his place in the Cardinals’ plans.
On Tuesday came the reward.
Thomas, already the Arizona Fall League’s pitcher of the year, was added to the Cardinals’ 40-man roster so that he could be protected from the upcoming Rule 5 Draft. Thomas, 24, led the elite fall league with 34 strikeouts, and in six starts he had a 1.75 ERA in 25 2/3 innings for Salt River Rafters. That performance elevated him to a spot on the Cardinals’ depth chart as a possible lefty reliever or long reliever, and he’ll come to spring training as part of the major-league roster.

The deadline to protect eligible players from the Rule 5 Draft came Tuesday at 5 p.m. St. Louis time. The Cardinals had only a handful of decisions, mostly surrounding how many spots on the 40-man roster they wanted to keep open or open up for prospects.
Thomas’ addition puts the roster at 39.
The Cardinals continue to plan to add a catcher and their hope is to add an additional bat, suggesting they’ll create room on the roster with another move or series of them. On Friday, the Cardinals must present contracts to arbitration-eligible players who are not yet signed for the 2023 season. The Cardinals can elect to not “tender” them contracts, and those non-tendered players become free agents.
 
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All I'm asking for this offseason is a good catcher and a top 2 starting pitcher.

With Jordan Walker "apparently" ready, I'm okay with the outfield mix...but, just okay. If the Cards obtained a proven outfielder, it would be okay with me. Somebody talk me down, but I'm losing faith in Carlson, and I'm tired of O'neill always being hurt. I'd give O'neill another chance because we need some power in the outfield. Love me some Noot, though!

I feel shortstop can be handled by Edmond and Donovan and second base by Donovan and Gorman. If Winn is ready, yes please! I'm sorry, DeJong suuccckkks.

Our starting pitchers going into a playoff series scare no one. Our only hope is an acquisition and a healthy Flaherty. Mikolas, Wainright, & Montgomery are #3 to #5 rotation guys at best. I would love to have 2 dominant pitchers and a really good #3 to entering a playoff series. The adage of good pitching stops good hitting is still true today. Oh, and I'm not sure I ever want to see Hudson pitch again, my blood pressure raises too much when he pitches.

We need a quality starting catcher. Knizner is not a starting catcher and is a very average backup. Wouldn't be opposed to finding another backup, also. Which hurts because I was a big Knizner supporter. He he had hit everywhere he played in the minors, and I thought he would figure it out. I'm not so sure anymore.

Is this enough to get to a world series? I'm bored, so tell me where I'm wrong!
 
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pruman91

Paducah, Ky
All I'm asking for this offseason is a good catcher and a top 2 starting pitcher.

With Jordan Walker "apparently" ready, I'm okay with the outfield mix...but, just okay. If the Cards obtained a proven outfielder, it would be okay with me. Somebody talk me down, but I'm losing faith in Carlson, and I'm tired of O'neill always being hurt. I'd give O'neill another chance because we need some power in the outfield. Love me some Noot, though!

I feel shortstop can be handled by Edmond and Donovan and second base by Donovan and Gorman. If Winn is ready, yes please! I'm sorry, DeJong suuccckkks.

Our starting pitchers going into a playoff series scare no one. Our only hope is an acquisition and a healthy Flaherty. Mikolas, Wainright, & Montgomery are #3 to #5 rotation guys at best. I would love to have 2 dominant pitchers and a really good #3 to entering a playoff series. The adage of good pitching stops good hitting is still true today. Oh, and I'm not sure I ever want to see Hudson pitch again, my blood pressure raises too much when he pitches.

We need a quality starting catcher. Knizner is not a starting catcher and is a very average backup. Wouldn't be opposed to finding another backup, also. Which hurts because I was a big Knizner supporter. He he had hit everywhere he played in the minors, and I thought he would figure it out. I'm not so sure anymore.

Is this enough to get to a world series? I'm bored, so tell me where I'm wrong!
These are your opinions and I generally agree with your intent..........I would take a couple of points a little further than you..........Carlson is average , at best ......he will never be a 25 + HR guy or 80-100 RBI guy.......He's way to skinny and has an unmuscular frame ........On the complete other side of the spectrum , TON is TOO muscular and more prone to hamstring and ankle injuries.....I also noticed TON pulling away from home plate like he was afraid of being hit and the ball was right down the middle.....He will be a gamble for the FO to figure out .....Hold onto TON and suffer numerous years of less than 100 games played and then suffer with Carlson with numerous injuries and zero production from his left handed hitting side....

Edmon & Donovan now both have Gold Gloves in their resume , so that is set with Gorman at LH GH and spell in the field ....

PDJ is a heavy weight on the roster and I still have no idea why MO is talking him up except to maintain what little trade value he still has ......A less expensive version of the Dexter Fowler fiasco........

catcher is , without a doubt , priority # 1 .........with at least one high end starter a close second..........

Flaherty............injury prone with his eyes on returning home to California
Hudson ............hasn't located a consistent strike zone yet , so why think he ever will.....TJ surgery plays a miniscule part if any at all....
Waino.............Love him as a long time Cardinal and want to celebrate his final year , but an 85 mph fastball don't play anymore ......dead arm ??
Mikolas ...........great stuff but will he ever reach the 18-4 year stuff he had before ?
Montgomery .............I want to see a full year before making a judgment
Quintana.....................please resign asap

etc etc.........................nobody above that strikes fear in the opposition.......................

I have a solid opinion it will be same as last season and before with low hanging fruit compared to the shiny fruit higher up the food chain........

JMHO......................
 
#2,097      

pruman91

Paducah, Ky

Derrick Goold
Aweek crammed with deadlines for roster decisions neared its end with the Cardinals locking in one of the pitchers they have to make a choice on.
The Cardinals and reliever Chris Stratton agreed on a one-year deal for 2023, the team announced. The deal is worth $2.8 million, per a source.
Stratton, 32, came to the Cardinals at the trade deadline along with lefty Jose Quintana from the Pittsburgh Pirates. In 20 appearances with the Cardinals, Stratton was 5-0 with a 2.78 ERA and 23 strikeouts in 22 2/3 innings. He has spent parts of the past seven years pitching in the majors, most of that time as a reliever with the Pirates.

The Cardinals and Stratton reached agreement on the eve of baseball's deadline for teams to present ("tender") contracts to arbitration-eligible players. The value of those contracts can be set through negotiations later in the offseason or arbitration hearings next spring. Stratton is entering his third and final year of arbitration eligibility. If a team does not want to be locked into the arbitration process and the salary raise it's likely to cause, that team can negotiate a new deal, as the Cardinals did with Stratton, or elect to "non-tender" the player.
That player immediately becomes a free agent.
Major League Baseball inched up the non-tender deadline so that players could hit the open market earlier and ahead of Thanksgiving.
The Cardinals plan to tender contracts to almost all of their other 10 eligible players, though the team continues to deliberate what to do with right-hander and longtime top prospect Alex Reyes. The All-Star closer missed all of the 2022 season with shoulder soreness that ultimately required shoulder surgery. His current rehab schedule his ready to return to the majors in May. Reyes' salary is likely to remain static, at $2.85 million, if he goes into the arbitration process.
 
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pruman91

Paducah, Ky

Derrick Goold

After years of hoping for lightning to strike again and again from one of the most electric arms they’ve had, the Cardinals allowed Alex Reyes, longtime prospect and one-time All-Star, to become a free agent Friday night after a season lost to another injury.
Reyes and outfielder Ben DeLuzio were not presented contracts for the 2023 season by the Cardinals before Friday night’s deadline, removing them from the team’s 40-man roster and freeing them to sign with other clubs.
A few months removed from being the Cardinals’ All-Star closer, Reyes missed the entire 2022 season with a shoulder injury that required surgery. His current throwing program targets his return to games in May, meaning since his debut in 2016 Reyes has had only one complete season in the majors due to a run of injuries ranging from elbow reconstruction to a broken hand to multiple shoulder surgeries. That weighed heavily into the Cardinals decision not to go through the arbitration process this winter with Reyes and instead make their pitch to him as a free agent without limitations to the type and size of contract they can offer.

“These are rarely easy decisions, especially when you have a long-term relationship with a player,” said John Mozeliak, president of baseball operations. “Alex showed signs of excellence but he also dealt with so many different injuries. We all wish for a different outcome and we are not closing the door; it is ajar.”
The Cardinals did present contracts — “tender” contracts in baseball’s lingo — to all of the other players on the roster without deals in place for 2023. That includes nine players who are arbitration eligible this winter: pitchers Jordan Montgomery, Jordan Hicks and Jack Flaherty, each entering their final year before qualifying for free agency; pitchers Ryan Helsley, Genesis Cabrera and Dakota Hudson; outfielder Tyler O’Neill; infielder Tommy Edman; and catcher Andrew Knizner.
Removing Reyes and DeLuzio from the contract leaves the Cardinals with 37 on their 40-man roster, and still an offseason shopping list that includes a starting catcher and an additional bat for the lineup, possibly a left-handed hitter.
 
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pruman91

Paducah, Ky

Ben Frederickson

If it was any other player, the topic probably would have been, at the best, uncomfortable and, at the worst, upsetting.
Chances are it would have been glossed over, danced around or just flat out ignored.
Here was first-time National League MVP winner Paul Goldschmidt on the evening of receiving an honor he had come oh so close to winning in the past before falling just short. Not this time. After three previous seasons in which he finished in the top-three of NL MVP voting, Goldschmidt was finally number one.
This was a night for celebration for the Cardinals and their first baseman. It felt almost wrong for the conversation to veer away from that in any way, shape or form. Except Goldschmidt led it there.

Not once. Not twice. Multiple times.
On MLB Network. On Bally Sports. On a half-hour phone call with baseball writers that followed.
“It was a disappointing end of the year,” Goldschmidt said seconds into his Thursday night conference call.
The Cardinals’ first baseman made it clear he can both celebrate his well-deserved honor while also evaluating why the most important stretch of his club’s season coincided with the most frustrating part of his sensational individual performance.
The 2022 Cardinals season was a special one that produced the NL MVP in Goldschmidt, a finalist in third baseman Nolan Arenado and one of the best stories in baseball in the sendoff of retiring Albert Pujols, who appeared on the MLB Network broadcast to announce Goldschmidt as the MVP winner while Arenado clapped on air. Pujols had been the Cardinals’ last MVP recipient. He passed the baton to Goldschmidt as the world watched. What a moment.
 
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I'm sorry to see Reyes was not kept. I don't disagree with what Mo and the team did. It's been so frustrating to see him struggle and then end up on IL. I have to wonder if Hicks won't be far behind.