It’s been three years since the St. Louis Cardinals saw a 20-home run season from their everyday first baseman. Long-time slugger Albert Pujols left for the Angels before the 2012 season, and Allen Craig‘s power numbers declined significantly after he hit 22 homers for St. Louis as Pujols’ replacement in 2012. Craig, Matt Adams, Mark Reynolds, Stephen Piscotty and others have seen time at the position since Pujols left, the Cardinals have struggled to find their next franchise first baseman. According to reports, however, they may have their eyes set on one: Chris Davis.
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Davis leads a very thin first base free agent crop, and comes off a season in which he hit 47 RBIs and drove in 117 runs, also working a career-high 87 walks and hitting 31 doubles. While Davis also led baseball in strikeouts, the 29-year-old also brought hit average up to .262 after struggling to a lowly .196 in 2014.
The Cardinals reportedly like Davis because of his defensive versatility (he’s played first, third and both corner outfield spots in his big-league career), though as things currently sit it appears the former Silver Slugger would mostly man first base. Matt Holliday, Randal Grichuk, Stephen Piscotty, Jon Jay and Tommy Pham are currently fighting for outfield playing time, with Holliday seeming to be a lock to be the everyday left fielder in 2016. Piscotty will also have to fight with Brandon Moss and Matt Adams for playing time at first base, though both of the latter two have been named trade candidates, and any of the aforementioned outfielders could also be on the move.
That being said, it’s unclear where Davis fits into that mix, as St. Louis has a plethora of options to man all the positions Davis can handle. His bat would, however, be welcome addition to a Cardinals team that ranked 25th in the majors in homers (137), 24th in RBIs (619), 23rd in slugging percentage (.394), and 19th in on-base plus slugging (.716). Adding Davis would also make some combination of Adams, Moss and the Cardinals’ several outfielders expendable as the team looks to bolster its pitching staff.
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The St. Louis front office has seemingly conceded that it won’t have the necessary funds to re-sign free agent outfielder Jason Heyward, though reports of the team’s interest in Davis indicate there’s money to be spent. While a reunion with Heyward doesn’t make much sense due to the club’s current outfield depth, it does open up discussion on whether the Cardinals will get in the mix for big-time pitchers like David Price, Zack Greinke, Johnny Cueto, Jordan Zimmermann and others. Regardless of where John Mozeliak turns for help this winter, it appears this will be a splashier winter than usual in St. Louis.