St Louis Cardinals

The St. Louis Cardinals are expected to "pursue" starting pitcher Sonny Gray in MLB free agency, according to The Athletic's Katie Woo.

Woo detailed how the Cardinals could look to make a quick turnaround following a 71-91 finish in 2023: "The Cardinals are expected to be one of the most active teams in the offseason, but in order for them to get started, [president of baseball operations John Mozeliak] will need to spend the next couple of weeks finalizing his blueprint for the next four months."

Mozeliak telegraphed his intentions before the trade deadline when he said the Cardinals wouldn't have a fire sale amid a year falling well short of expectations.

Assuming the plan is to contend again straight away, bolstering the starting rotation is the first place to start.

St. Louis' starters combined to finish 22nd in FIP (4.61) and 19th in WAR (9.6), per FanGraphs, and the unit's top performer (Jack Flaherty) was shipped out midseason ahead of his free agency.

Gray would give the Cardinals an upgrade without breaking the bank. Spotrac projects his market value at $60.9 million over three years.

The 33-year-old put together one of his best seasons in 2023. Over 32 starts, he finished 8-8 with a 2.79 ERA and a 2.83 FIP.

Gray continues to be a bit of an outlier these days in that he relies heavily on movement and command over velocity on the mound. Per Baseball Savant, his four-seam fastball and sinker both averaged just under 93 mph. Still, his production is evidence of his continued effectiveness.

Because he profiles as a great addition for any team with playoff aspirations, the Cardinals are likely to have plenty of competition for the three-time All-Star.

Former St. Louis Cardinals great Yadier Molina has had conversations with the club about potentially joining the coaching staff in 2024 and both sides have a mutual interest in a reunion, according to The Athletic's Katie Woo.

"It's unclear what role Molina would have, but if he does join the staff it's believed he will have an everyday position," Woo wrote. "Molina, who retired in 2022 after 19 seasons with the Cardinals, had previously expressed a desire to be a major-league manager. He had his first taste of managing this spring when he managed Puerto Rico in the World Baseball Classic."

Molina is widely regarded as one of the best catchers in major league history and he goes down as one of the greatest players St. Louis has ever rostered.

The 41-year-old spent his entire 19-year major league career with the Cardinals from 2004-22, helping the club win two World Series titles in that span. The star catcher also earned nine Gold Gloves, four Platinum Gloves, 10 All-Star selections and a Silver Slugger award.

He finished his career slashing .277/.327/.399 with 176 home runs and 1,022 RBI in 2,224 games, in addition to boasting a 42.1 WAR.

Molina got his first taste of managing at the 2023 World Baseball Classic, where he managed his native Puerto Rico to a quarterfinal matchup against Mexico before being eliminated.

"Yeah, that was a quick decision by me," Molina said at the time, per MLB.com's Ian Browne of his transition from player to manager. "I feel like it was the right one because I learned a lot over there in Venezuela. It was a great experience for me."

At some point, it's possible Molina will take over as a big league manager, perhaps as leader of the Cardinals. However, St. Louis has already confirmed Oliver Marmol will return to manage the club in 2024, the final year of his three-year contract.

Bringing in Molina could be a huge boost to a Cardinals team that missed the playoffs last season for the first time since the 2018 campaign. Perhaps he would work closely with veteran catcher Willson Contreras and the pitching staff.

With the 2023 postseason nearing an end, it's possible we'll learn what Molina's role is sooner rather than later as the Cardinals continue to prepare for the 2024 campaign.

Players and coaches in the St. Louis Cardinals organization were reportedly robbed at gunpoint at the team's academy in the Dominican Republic on Friday.

According to MLB insider Héctor Gómez, armed men broke into the Cardinals' academy and robbed money and jewelry from players after taking them out of their rooms and holding coaches at gunpoint.

Per Gómez, the Cleveland Guardians and Miami Marlins have also been robbed by armed men in the Dominican Republic in recent weeks.

Per Bob Nightengale of USA Today, Cardinals president John Mozeliak released a statement regarding the robbery, saying: "This was scary on many fronts. Our players and staff were shaken up but not harmed. No one was injured, and we will reassess our security provisions immediately."

Gómez additionally reported that while past robberies have seen the perpetrators take only baseball equipment, that has changed recently.

Now, armed men are reportedly raiding MLB team academies in the Dominican Republic and taking cash, as well as other valuables from safes.

The Cards' academy is located in Boca Chica, and local authorities are investigating the robbery, which took place Friday in the early-morning hours, per Reggie Lee of Fox 2.

The Cardinals have long been entrenched in the D.R., as they own a Dominican Summer League team named the DSL Cardinals and have been affiliated with them since 1996.

Over the past couple of decades, the Cardinals have scouted and signed many high-profile Dominican players. They drafted future Hall of Famer Albert Pujols, who was raised in Santo Domingo.

St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Adam Wainwright is giving new meaning to the idea of a baseball swan song.

As David Ginsburg of the Associated Press noted, Wainwright will perform a postgame concert following his team's Sept. 30 home game against the Cincinnati Reds. The 42-year-old is retiring after the 2023 campaign, so it will happen as part of the final homestand of his career.

"I'm excited about sharing some music with everybody, and hopefully they'll like it," Wainwright said Wednesday. "It's a fun opportunity for me."

He is planning on releasing a new country album following his retirement and will play three original songs that will be featured on the album.

Wainwright also played the national anthem before the Cardinals' home opener this season.

While this season has been one to forget for both the right-hander and the team, he will always be a St. Louis legend. This is his 18th season with the Cardinals, and his resume includes a World Series title, two Gold Gloves, three All-Star selections and a Silver Slugger award.

The Cardinals are 64-81 and in last place in the National League Central this season, but the postgame concert will give fans the opportunity to remember better times with Wainwright.

The St. Louis Cardinals announced Thursday they promoted shortstop Masyn Winn from their Triple-A affiliate.

Winn ranks No. 32 overall in MLB.com's list of the top 100 prospects. He has a .288/.359/.474 slash line with 18 home runs and 61 RBI in 105 games with the Memphis Redbirds this season.

Along with promoting Winn, the Cardinals placed Lars Nootbaar on the 10-day injured list with a lower abdomen contusion.

With Nootbaar unavailable, the Cardinals started Tommy Edman in center field for Thursday's 4-2 loss to the New York Mets. Assuming Edman continues to occupy center for the time being, it created the need for another middle infielder and opened the door for Winn to make his highly anticipated MLB debut.

"He's one of the most exciting players I've seen in a while, and I am thrilled that he is coming up, and we'll get a chance to see it up here," manager Oliver Marmol said, per MLB.com's John Denton. "This is an electric player, for sure."

As good as his offensive numbers are, Winn's defense might become his calling card in the bigs. MLB.com gives him a 60 scouting grade for his fielding and an 80 grade — the highest available — for his arm.

Ahead of the MLB trade deadline, Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak indicated the organization was already looking ahead to 2024 with the playoffs looking less and less likely.

Promoting Winn aligns with that vision, even if it probably only happened now because of Nootbaar's injury. The 21-year-old has the opportunity to make an early case for being the Opening Day shortstop next season.

The St. Louis Cardinals are moving on from Jack Flaherty after seven seasons.

St. Louis is finalizing a deal to trade the veteran right-hander to the Baltimore Orioles, according to ESPN's Jeff Passan.

The Cardinals' decision to move on from Flaherty comes as little surprise amid the club's surprising downfall in the National League Central. St. Louis currently sits fifth in the division with a 47-60 record and isn't even close to contending for a playoff spot.

With the Cards on pace to miss the postseason for the first time since 2018, Flaherty was speculated as a trade candidate alongside Jordan Montgomery, who was traded to the Texas Rangers, and outfielder Tyler O'Neill.

Players like Nolan Arenado, Paul Goldschmidt and Jordan Walker were never seriously considered movable given their value to a Cardinals team that could very easily bounce back in 2024.

Flaherty had been a staple in the Cardinals rotation since 2017 and he's in the midst of a decent 2023 campaign. In 20 starts, he is 7-6 with a 4.43 ERA, 1.55 WHIP and 106 strikeouts in 109.2 innings.

The 27-year-old's best season came in 2019 when he finished fourth in National League Cy Young voting after going 11-8 with a 2.75 ERA, 0.97 WHIP and 231 strikeouts in 196.1 innings.

With the Orioles legitimate contenders to win the AL East for the first time since the 2014 campaign, the franchise was in the market for a pitcher this summer to boost a rotation that also includes Kyle Gibson, Dean Kremer, Kyle Bradish and Grayson Rodriguez.

Baltimore sits first in the division with a 65-41 record in part thanks to breakout performances from young stars Adley Rutschman and Gunnar Henderson. With Flaherty on board, it now seems like sky is the limit for the O's.

As for the Cardinals, they will likely give young starters a shot to fill the void after Adam Wainwright, Miles Mikolas and Steven Matz.

It appears that St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Dylan Carlson will be staying put ahead of Tuesday's MLB trade deadline.

Jon Heyman of the New York Post reported the team is unlikely to move the 24-year-old, with an exception being for a package containing a young, MLB-ready starting pitcher.

The news comes after Chris Kirschner of The Athletic reported that the New York Yankees were targeting the outfielder.

The switch-hitter is hitting .230 with five home runs and 24 RBI in 69 games in 2023.

Carlson's career production has not matched his pedigree as a 2016 first-round pick. He has been a .245/.324/.397 hitter since being called up in 2020 but was once a Baseball America top-10 overall prospect and was considered a major piece in the team's quest to land Juan Soto ahead of last season's deadline.

He is still just 24 and carries some value, but it appears the Cardinals want to maximize that value and teams may not be willing to give up what they seek.

St. Louis has been a seller this deadline, a rare occurrence in franchise history, and has already dealt Jordan Montgomery and Jordan Hicks.

The Yankees sit in last place in the AL East, which is where St. Louis sits in the NL Central, but the two teams' situations differ greatly. The Cardinals are 47-60 and in fifth place, but the Yankees are 55-51 and sit in striking distance of the final wild-card spot at 3.5 games back.

Hitting has been the issue for New York in 2023, as the team sits at 29th in MLB in batting average. Adding a potent bat at the deadline will be crucial for a playoff push, and a short right field porch at Yankee Stadium could be just what Carlson needs to revitalize his career.

While it could be a great move on the Yankees' end, the young, MLB-ready pitcher the Cardinals seek may not be available. Clarke Schmidt could be the best option the Yankees have to offer, with Jhony Britto and Will Warren being potential candidates as well, but it is unclear if they match up to the type of player St. Louis is looking for.

The trade deadline will pass at 6:00 p.m ET.

After weeks of speculation, Jordan Montgomery is finally on the move.

The Texas Rangers acquired Montgomery in a five-player deal on Sunday:

• Rangers get: LHP Jordan Montgomery and RHP Chris Stratton
• Cardinals get: INF Thomas Saggese, RHP Tekoah Roby and LHP John King.

ESPN's Jeff Passan first reported the deal.

St. Louis entered the Aug. 1 trade deadline as clear sellers amid a disappointing season that has seen the club drop to last in the National League Central with a 46-60 record. The Cards are 11.5 games back of the first-place Milwaukee Brewers and 11 games back of a wild card spot.

They already started selling before the Montgomery deal went public by trading star reliever Jordan Hicks to the Toronto Blue Jays. However, the Cardinals are getting an impressive haul of prospects in return as they look toward the future, per Bob Nightengale of USA Today.

Montgomery, who is in the final year of his contract and will become a free agent at the end of the season, has long been speculated as a trade candidate. ESPN's Jesse Rogers also reported on July 24 that the veteran was considered "as good as gone."

The 30-year-old had spent the last season and a half in St. Louis after beginning his career with the New York Yankees, pitching for the Pinstripes from 2017 until he was traded to the Cards during the 2022 campaign.

Montgomery is in the midst of a solid season and should be a great asset for the Rangers. He is 6-9 with a 3.42 ERA, 1.25 WHIP and 108 strikeouts in 121 innings across 21 starts.

Texas is clearly all-in on this season after previously acquiring starting pitcher Max Scherzer from the New York Mets. Presumably, the Rangers will now roll into the playoffs with a stout four-man rotation of All-Star Nathan Eovaldi, Scherzer, Jon Gray and now Montgomery. With the team already sporting one of MLB's top offenses, the Rangers have further solidified themselves as a legitimate World Series threat in the last two days.

Ahead of Tuesday's MLB trade deadline, the Toronto Blue Jays reportedly landed one of the most coveted players on the market.

The Blue Jays announced that they acquired right-handed reliever Jordan Hicks from the St. Louis Cardinals in exchange for pitching prospects Sem Robberse and Adam Kloffenstein. Hicks had been sought after by the New York Yankees, among other teams.

Bob Nightengale of USA Today reported that St. Louis also acquired three prospects from the Texas Rangers in exchange for starting pitcher Jordan Montgomery and reliever Chris Stratton, continuing Sunday's firesale.

Earlier on Sunday, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that the Yankees were interested in Hicks and outfielder Dylan Carson and held discussions with the Cardinals about the availability of both players. In the end, the sweepstakes for Hicks were won by their rivals in the AL East.

The Blue Jays were seeking bullpen help after placing closer Jordan Romano on the 15-day injured list on Saturday due to lower back inflammation. The two-time All-Star entered Saturday tied for the lead in the American League with 28 saves this season.

In Hicks, Toronto is getting a quality reliever who can help hold down the fort until Romano returns. The 26-year-old has made 40 appearances this season and has a 3.67 ERA, a 1.51 WHIP and 59 strikeouts in 41.2 innings pitched.

Goold had previously reported that Hicks was in discussions with St. Louis on a potential contract extension, but on Thursday he noted that those talks failed to progress. The breakdown in negotiations likely helped facilitate the trade to Toronto.

The Blue Jays are third in the AL East and fell to 59-47 with Sunday's loss to the Los Angeles Angels. Toronto will try to bounce back when it opens its series against the first-place Baltimore Orioles (63-41) on Monday.