Another month of the offseason, another missed chance for the St. Louis Cardinals to add to their rotation.
With the news on Friday that the Miami Marlins and Minnesota Twins had pulled off a trade that sent starting pitcher Pablo Lopez from south Florida to the Twin Cities, it marked another top-flight starter that had slipped through the fingers of the Cardinals.
Carlos Rodon and Pablo Lopez could be the ghosts that haunt the St. Louis Cardinals in 2023
Earlier in the offseason, the Cardinals were reportedly in the hunt for Rodon before ultimately deciding that the free agent’s asking price was simply too high. The southpaw would eventually sign a six-year, $162 million with the New York Yankees.
Lopez, however, would have come with a lower payroll cost but likely a higher personnel cost. For the Twins to land him, they had to send defending American League batting champion Luis Arraez to the Marlins along with a pair of prospects. Rumors indicated that the price for the Cardinals could include an outfielder along the lines of Lars Nootbaar or Tyler O’Neill, which could have made an interesting decision for a St. Louis team that has outfield prospect Jordan Walker knocking on the door.
St. Louis has been unwilling to pay a high cost (money or talent) in order to land a starting pitcher this offseason. The franchise seems content to count on the ageless Adam Wainwright to put together another successful season and Jack Flaherty to stay healthy and contribute in a big way, along with the talents of Steven Matz, Miles Mikolas, and Jordan Montgomery.
That projected starting rotation is projected by FanGraphs to be a middle-of-the-pack group among MLB starters in 2023. With an offense like the Cardinals possess, maybe Nolan Arenado, Paul Goldschmidt, and the newly signed Willson Contreras can simply outslug the other team. It’s a gamble the Cardinals seem willing to take.
Every team will have offseason regrets, but will the Cardinals regret not spending a little more this offseason to ensure the rotation matches the bats? It may not keep St. Louis from once again winning the National League Central in 2023. However, for a franchise that hasn’t captured a World Series title in more than a decade, it may be October before we know if bypassing the chance to strengthen the rotation was a fatal offseason error in the Gateway City.