By Reportedly Signing Sonny Gray The Cardinals Have Now Successfully Built An Ancient Rotation

David Berding. Getty Images.

I think you have to give the Cardinals some credit for not waiting around and going after the guys they want. I just don't really get the guys they've chose. This staff is old as fuck. Here's their ages and salaries for next season:

Lance Lynn - 37 years old (signed for 1 year at $11 million)

Kyle Gibson - 36 years old (signed for 1 year at $10 million)

Miles Mikolas - 35 years old (signed for 2 years at $18.5 million/year)

Sonny Gray - 34 years old (signed for 3 years at $25 million/year)

Steven Matz - 33 years (signed for 2 years at $12.5 million/year)

The Cardinals are spending $77 million dollars next year on THAT? On top of that, their two best hitters are old too. Paul Goldschmidt will be 36 next year and Nolan Arenado will be 33. I don't really know what the plan for the Cardinals is? Are they trying to rebuild the farm system and using these old pitchers as a bridge to the next era for the Cardinals? If so, wouldn't it be better just to suck for a couple years and build up the team through higher draft picks and trading veterans for resources?

Tannen Maury. Shutterstock Images.

The Cardinals are typically a team that is very steady that makes prudent and logical moves. Signing Sonny Gray doesn't make a ton of sense to me. I like Gray and he was 2nd on the AL Cy Young race this past season. But he also comes with a qualifying offer attached which means a team like the Cards with 91 losses will lose picks. The other thing is Gray is a very nice pitcher but he won't pitch deep into games. He hasn't won 9 games in a season since 2019. He hasn't thrown a complete game since 2018. 

The other thing I don't get about this off-season for the Cards is they kept Oli Marmol as manager. This was the most dysfunctional season the Cards have had in awhile. You had Willson Contreras having confidence issues and then taken out as starting catcher only to be put back into the role. There was a noticeable leadership difference in that clubhouse with Yadi Molina and Albert Pujols retiring. Marmol never seemed to have a handle on anything and they brought him back?

Icon Sportswire. Getty Images.

Is the team better with the signings of Gray, Lynn and Gibson? I guess so. It's addition by subtraction with not having to send Adam Wainwright out there 21 times so he can get his 200th win. But Jordan Montgomery and Jack Flaherty weren't bad for the Cardinals and they made a total of 41 starts for the team last year. You do still have to replace those starts.

But it's not all doom and gloom for the Cards. They do play in the NL Central and the Brewers could take a huge step back next year. The Pirates don't seem inclined to spend money yet again this off-season. The Reds could but until they do, I won't believe it. Finally, the Cubs could do anything but they need to either re-sign or replace Cody Bollinger as well. If they can get one more decent year out of this nursing home brigade, could it be enough to compete?

until the Braves, Dodgers or Phillies knock the shit out of them in the playoffs.