The St. Louis Cardinals have already begun their offseason shopping.
Just a mere few our days after re-signing reliever T.J. McFarland to a one-year, $2.5M deal, there are already rumors that they may be in on a certain starter.
Yesterday, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch confirmed a report from Tim Heaney that several teams were showing interest in left-hander Steven Matz, with the Cardinals being among the four teams listed. The others were the Red Sox, Dodgers, and Angels.
With Kwang-Hyun Kim likely departing, as well as Jon Lester and J.A. Happ, St. Louis have found themselves in the market for a lefty starter. Matz had a 2.0 WAR and went 14-7 with a 3.82 ERA in 2021 with the Blue Jays. after a dismal 2020 season.
If signed, Matz would fill that need and give the Cards their fifth starter heading into 2022. , as well as a lefty, which is what they’re main focus is on the pitching front. There is also expectation speculation that he the left-hander will may sign before the CBA expires, and that he’ll do it end of this month. , which would be ahead of the day the CBA expires and before a potential lockout happens, something that seems very likely with tensions simmering between the players and owners.
Other options the Cardinals could look at include Tyler Anderson, Alex Wood, Rich Hill, Clayton Kershaw, and several more.
Matz would certainly be cheaper than starters such as Carlos Rodon and Robbie Ray, but he’s serviceable nonetheless, and that’s really all St. Louis needs. With Adam Wainwright, Jack Flaherty, Dakota Hudson, and Miles Mikolas, they should be covered innings-wise, as long as the latter three stay healthy.
Matz would also most likely only be a one-year deal, which saves the Cards from too large a commitment.
Granted, the Cardinals will explore all options for starting pitching. John Mozeliak has said he wants to be patient and wait for the right move, but this could possibly be it.
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