I would love to see the Cardinals do three things. 1. Stick (primarily) to letting the kids play. 2. Save money for next year. 3. Go out and sign ONE strong starting pitcher (someone like Max Fried). Even if we were to sign Fried, I doubt he's signing for that much more than what Goldschmidt was getting paid last year. Couple that with the fact that Lynn and Gibby are off the books, even if Fried would command a $30 Million AAV, the Card's are still DEFINITELY saving money, but are also loading up for an explosive 2026. Plus, if you have another guy to pair with Gray, and even one of our guys (say, McGreevey) emerges as a truly solid starter, imagine a rotation of 1) Gray, 2) Fried, 3) Pallante, 4) McGreevey, 5) Either Hence, Graceffo, or whoever is the most ready. That rotation in 2026 sounds like it would be the best we would've had in well over half a decade! As for this year, signing one guy (again, we'll stick with Fried as the example here) still "lets the kids play," but also bulks up our rotation for when injuries, inevitably, strike. Matz feels like we can expect him to miss at least 7-10 starts annually, and I would be much happier just moving on from him as a starter, save for the spot-start here and there. He's far better in the bullpen, and like Libertore, I don't want to mess with that. As for Mikolas, you could run him as a "6th" starter. Obviously, you let guys like Gray, Fried, and Pallante pitch every fifth start, but given that the younger guys are probably not quite ready for the full workload, letting them have a buffer guy could help in their development. Plus, we at least get some use out of the Lizard King's last year on the books. I'm not opposed to getting Quintana, but again, I would seriously consider (if I were in charge of the Front Office) going out and signing one truly good-to-great starter. Better to have too many starters than not enough.
The biggest need/focus this offseason should be lottery tickets. Look for the diamonds in the rough that can turn into contributor/glue guy types for the next iteration of winning Cardinals baseball
I agree and I think Helsley should go not because I don’t want him but if the cards aren’t supposed to contend why do we need a top shelf closer who could possibly get a good haul in a trade
@@chrisweidner4768 I truly get that. honestly I’m probably in the minority where I think a few bad seasons could infuse the team with talent and if the cardinals are infusing more money into the minors might as well get talent so the new tools can be used.
@ The youth might just surprise. Key is what they are being taught every day in the off-season and during the regular season. Need wise, warrior coaching. No more of this timid approach at the plate embarrassment. If you decide to swing and it fades out of the strike zone, drive it foul. Drive everything.
Their biggest need are coaches who can get the most out of the players. Cutting loose of the dead weight on the coaching staff will have to wait until Mo is gone.
If Arenado traded I think we need a right hand bat that can play all over otherwise not sure. Contreras at 1st Saggese 2nd Winn ss Gorman 3rd (Donovan fill in when Saggese gives Winn a day off) otherwise you need to choose from Donovan Scott Walker Burleson Siani Koperniak Nootbaar for the 3 outfield position
The biggest need is to convince fans that they care about winning again. The nightmare with Contreras in 23 is a good example of a poorly run team. Let’s see improvement in the running game on both sides of the ball. Solid defense and better situational hitting. Regular communication about what it looks like in the minors where the money is being spent.
Lets use a 6 man rotation to start Gray Fedde Pallante Mcgreevy and throw hence and mathews for at least 4 innings then bring in Mikolas and Matz on long relief then maybe after a month we can go to a 5 man depending on how it is going
I can't imagine Mikolas not being part of the rotation this year. They're already paying him and he takes the ball every 5 days. They just dropped two options for guys they hired to do exactly that. He pitched to a 4.24 FIP and still was worth 2 fWAR, the third highest from a Cardinals pitcher in 2024 behind Gray and Helsley. His trade value is nearly nil. It just makes sense to keep him.
Farm system,dump salary,rebuild.
Hand it off to MrBloom.
No need to spend on wildly expensive FAs.
I would love to see the Cardinals do three things.
1. Stick (primarily) to letting the kids play.
2. Save money for next year.
3. Go out and sign ONE strong starting pitcher (someone like Max Fried).
Even if we were to sign Fried, I doubt he's signing for that much more than what Goldschmidt was getting paid last year. Couple that with the fact that Lynn and Gibby are off the books, even if Fried would command a $30 Million AAV, the Card's are still DEFINITELY saving money, but are also loading up for an explosive 2026. Plus, if you have another guy to pair with Gray, and even one of our guys (say, McGreevey) emerges as a truly solid starter, imagine a rotation of 1) Gray, 2) Fried, 3) Pallante, 4) McGreevey, 5) Either Hence, Graceffo, or whoever is the most ready. That rotation in 2026 sounds like it would be the best we would've had in well over half a decade!
As for this year, signing one guy (again, we'll stick with Fried as the example here) still "lets the kids play," but also bulks up our rotation for when injuries, inevitably, strike. Matz feels like we can expect him to miss at least 7-10 starts annually, and I would be much happier just moving on from him as a starter, save for the spot-start here and there. He's far better in the bullpen, and like Libertore, I don't want to mess with that. As for Mikolas, you could run him as a "6th" starter. Obviously, you let guys like Gray, Fried, and Pallante pitch every fifth start, but given that the younger guys are probably not quite ready for the full workload, letting them have a buffer guy could help in their development. Plus, we at least get some use out of the Lizard King's last year on the books.
I'm not opposed to getting Quintana, but again, I would seriously consider (if I were in charge of the Front Office) going out and signing one truly good-to-great starter. Better to have too many starters than not enough.
The biggest need/focus this offseason should be lottery tickets. Look for the diamonds in the rough that can turn into contributor/glue guy types for the next iteration of winning Cardinals baseball
They already are Munoz, Gomez and Barrrero
Thinking jettisoning Arenado opens up a lot of necessary options for the team to move forward and be far better.
I agree and I think Helsley should go not because I don’t want him but if the cards aren’t supposed to contend why do we need a top shelf closer who could possibly get a good haul in a trade
@ I’m in the minority, but I’d like to keep Ryan, at least till the trade deadline, in case we are contending.
@@chrisweidner4768 I truly get that. honestly I’m probably in the minority where I think a few bad seasons could infuse the team with talent and if the cardinals are infusing more money into the minors might as well get talent so the new tools can be used.
@ The youth might just surprise. Key is what they are being taught every day in the off-season and during the regular season. Need wise, warrior coaching. No more of this timid approach at the plate embarrassment. If you decide to swing and it fades out of the strike zone, drive it foul. Drive everything.
@@chrisweidner4768I only worry that he gets hurt in spring training and then we get nothing
Their biggest need are coaches who can get the most out of the players. Cutting loose of the dead weight on the coaching staff will have to wait until Mo is gone.
If Arenado traded I think we need a right hand bat that can play all over otherwise not sure. Contreras at 1st Saggese 2nd Winn ss Gorman 3rd (Donovan fill in when Saggese gives Winn a day off) otherwise you need to choose from Donovan Scott Walker Burleson Siani Koperniak Nootbaar for the 3 outfield position
The biggest need is to convince fans that they care about winning again. The nightmare with Contreras in 23 is a good example of a poorly run team. Let’s see improvement in the running game on both sides of the ball. Solid defense and better situational hitting. Regular communication about what it looks like in the minors where the money is being spent.
The biggest need, is let the kids play. Maybe pick up Romano on the cheap if Helsley is traded?
Matz to the pen.
Matz to North Korea
man im sad kloff got non-tendered, dude hopped on some twitter gc's before the season, cool guy!
Lets use a 6 man rotation to start Gray Fedde Pallante Mcgreevy and throw hence and mathews for at least 4 innings then bring in Mikolas and Matz on long relief then maybe after a month we can go to a 5 man depending on how it is going
Pitching Pitching Pitching!! Hitting Hitting Hitting!! 😂😂😂
They're not going to pick up any pitching and they're not going to pick up any hitting
@mikekeeler6362 yep, I know, but the question was, what's their biggest needs
If they were trying to win it would be Corbin Burns and Santander
I smell a third straight year with no legit bats added. MO cannot get GONE fast enough for me.
Okay, Contreras has been a legit bat when playing.
Matz is a huge failure!
Well he might have one more shot here
@ I’d keep him in the pen
His health has failed. He is actually a good pitcher
Shane Bieber, Corbin Burnes
New ownership
I can't imagine Mikolas not being part of the rotation this year. They're already paying him and he takes the ball every 5 days. They just dropped two options for guys they hired to do exactly that. He pitched to a 4.24 FIP and still was worth 2 fWAR, the third highest from a Cardinals pitcher in 2024 behind Gray and Helsley. His trade value is nearly nil. It just makes sense to keep him.
@@bloggersniffle5358 i agree with your take
yes it makes sense if you want to lose games...