Two items on the Cardinals’ offseason to-do list have already been completed. They signed Lance Lynn and Kyle Gibson to one-year contracts earlier this week.
Like many Cardinals supporters, I don’t think these are inherently horrible decisions, but they aren’t the moves I was expecting for or that the Cardinals required. They should have picked between Lynn and Gibson and targeted two front-end starters, in my opinion.
Instead, they’ve chosen to construct the rotation from the rear to the front, which I think is quite hazardous. But that takes us to the Cardinals’ next step.
The Cardinals require an ace to round out their starting rotation. They require someone like you.
Once again, the Cardinals rotation appears to be a weakness heading into the 2024 season. However, if John Mozeliak does his job correctly and throws an ace, the rotation will be in much better position.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Sonny Gray, Blake Snell, and Jordan Montgomery are still available after Aaron Nola left the market on Sunday. Dylan Cease, Shane Bieber, and Tyler Glasnow are all available for trade.
That being said, the Cardinals cannot afford to blow this next signing. With the rotation lacking in depth, the Cardinals will need to spend large for two bullpen arms.
I believe that starting pitching should be prioritized before the Cards look for relief help. I’m not saying they shouldn’t take advantage of the opportunity to add a reliever or two, but the rotation should come first, and the Cardinals must do so correctly.
The best course of action, in my opinion, would be to sign the ace in free agency and then wait until the trade deadline to acquire someone like Cease from the White Sox. This means they should concentrate on Yamamoto, Snell, Gray, and Montgomery.
The top three selections should be prioritized, as Yamamoto, Snell, and Gray all have swing-and-miss stuff, but Montgomery is a ground-ball pitcher.
I hate to say it, but Yamamoto seems implausible. Still, the Cardinals should try to sign him if possible. That would give them a true ace.
Snell and Gray, in my opinion, are the most likely. They are both No. 1 starters who can be counted on in crucial games. They will not be as pricey as Yamamoto and will primarily be strikeout pitchers.
The Cardinals’ worst-case scenario would be to sign someone like Frankie Montas, James Paxton, or maybe . While Rodriguez is a potential possibility, Montas and Paxton are merely bargain signings.
The Cardinals must go big and stop depending on pitchers to recover from poor seasons. They require consistency from their pitching staff, both in the rotation and the bullpen.
The Winter Meetings are approaching, and the market should begin to move a little more once they begin. The Cardinals must also make an effort to sign the appropriate No. 1 starter.
