St. Louis Cardinals Top Five Offseason Priorities
By Tim Haberin
What moves could the St. Louis Cardinals make to help them get back in the playoffs next year? Here are five items they should put on their offseason to-do list.
Earlier today we looked back on the St. Louis Cardinals‘ 2016 season, examining both the good and not-so-good aspects of their campaign. The thing Cards fans will probably remember most about this year is that for the first time since 2010 the team missed the postseason. The Chicago Cubs took control of the division early and never let go, relegating the Cardinals to the unfamiliar position of being overshadowed.
That’s not to say the season was an all-out disaster, however. The Redbirds finished one game out of a Wild Card spot. While that’s an agonizingly close margin by which to fall short, it’s also somewhat remarkable considering all the injuries and underwhelming performances the team had to deal with this year. If certain things break right next season, they stand a good chance of being right back in the October mix.
General manager John Mozeliak will try to set the stage for a return to the playoffs over the offseason. There are a variety of areas he should look to address, from a suspect starting rotation to a troublesome defense. There’s not a whole lot out there on the free agent market, so he’ll likely have to get a bit creative.
The Cubs aren’t going anywhere, but the Cards can quickly re-assert themselves as a competitor in the NL Central. Here are five moves they can make in the coming months to springboard themselves toward better results in 2017.
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