Rumor buy or sell: The Cardinals will not make a 'dynamic signing'
The Cardinals are not expected to make a "dynamic signing" this offseason, according to GM John Mozeliak. Do we buy or sell this rumor?
By
Mike Axisa
•
2 min read
Welcome to Eye On Baseball's Rumor Buy Or Sell. With a nod to our friends at Eye On Soccer, we'll crib their approach and break down the various trade and free agency rumors that come your way this offseason.
Rumor: After losing out on both David Price and Jason Heyward, Cardinals GM John Mozeliak says the team will not make a "dynamic signing" this offseason. Here's what Mozeliak told Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post Dispatch:
“We still feel like from what we’ve been trying to do and been through this winter allows us ways to improve,” Mozeliak said. “It’s clear now this offseason is not going to have that dynamic signing that we tried to do with (David) Price and Heyward. There isn’t anything now that we’re chasing with a nine-figure contract. We can take the time to see what we have in the players we control. Obviously, we’re always open to adjusting.”
Background: The Cardinals very clearly came into the offseason with money to spend and a willingness to spend it. They were the runner-up for Price, reportedly offering somewhere in the $180 million to $190 million range, and they made a big play for Heyward as well. St. Louis made big offers but not good enough offers.
The Cardinals are a well-oiled player development machine and it's easy to say they'll solve their roster problems because they always solve their roster problems, but it's hard not to notice they just lost their best pitcher (John Lackey) and hitter (Heyward) from 2015 (by WAR) to the rival Cubs. The rotation in particular seems risky:
- Adam Wainwright - Missed most of 2015 with an Achilles injury.
- Carlos Martinez - Shut down with a shoulder strain in September.
- Michael Wacha - Wore down and was noticeably fatigued at the end of the season.
- Jaime Garcia - Limited to 56 starts from 2012-15 due to arm problems.
- ???
Even with youngsters like Marco Gonzales and Tim Cooney available for the final starting spot, the need for rotation depth is obvious. The outfield is in decent shape with Matt Holliday, Randal Grichuk, Tommy Pham and Stephen Piscotty, though losing Heyward is obviously a significant blow. Finding an upgrade at first base -- the Cardinals have been connected to Chris Davis -- could still be on the agenda too.
So the Cardinals still have several things to address this offseason, especially after losing out on their top two targets in Price and Heyward. Keeping pace with the continually improving Cubs as well as the Pirates will take some work.
Buy or sell: I am going to sell the idea of the Cardinals not making a "dynamic signing" with the caveat that we don't know what exact Mozeliak defines as a "dynamic signing." The Cardinals have been connected to Alex Gordon in recent days and if they sign him for, say, five years and $90 million, does that qualify as "dynamic?" I think it would.
The three best free agent pitchers (Price, Zack Greinke, Johnny Cueto) are now off the board but other quality starters like Mike Leake, Scott Kazmir, Wei-Yin Chen and Kenta Maeda remain available. Heyward is the only top free agent outfielder to sign. Gordon, Justin Upton and Yoenis Cespedes are still out there.
Signing, say, Gordon and Leake would qualify as dynamic in my book, but maybe not Mozeliak's. Either way, the point is the Cardinals obviously have money to spend this offseason, and I would be surprised if they didn't find someone willing to take it before spring training.
