Ex-Cardinals Fan-Favorite Homegrown Hurler Signing With National League Foe

St. Louis will have one less target in free agency

Scott Neville | Dec 2, 2023

Ex-Cardinals Fan-Favorite Homegrown Hurler Signing With National League Foe /

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St. Louis Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak has spoken about turning his attention away from the rotation and toward the bullpen after acquiring Lance Lynn, Kyle Gibson and Sonny Gray over the span of a couple of weeks.

While most of the top free-agent relievers are still available, one former Cardinals fan-favorite reportedly will be officially off the board any moment.

"Free-agent reliever Joe Kelly and the Los Angeles Dodgers are 'very close' to an agreement, according to sources familiar with the situation," FanSided's Robert Murray reported Saturday. "All indications are that a deal will get done."

Kelly posted a 4.12 ERA with a 60-to-18 strikeout-to-walk ratio, .196 batting average against and a 1.20 WHIP in 39 1/3 innings last season between the Chicago White Sox and Los Angeles Dodgers last season.

The 35-year-old was not exactly an All-Star but his underlying metrics were impressive -- including his 2.72 FIP. He finished the year with a 1.74 ERA in Los Angeles post-trade, kept his strikeouts up, walks down and had an elite batting average against.

Alas, the Cardinals will not have a chance to bring Kelly back to the organization. Instead, they'll have to find other ancillary pieces to bolster the bullpen. There's still a chance St. Louis could target a reunion with Jordan Hicks, or possibly even Trevor Rosenthal.

Whether they target alumni or not, the Cardinals will need to make some additions to the pitching staff on the heels of the Winter Meetings.

More MLB: Ex-Cardinals All-Star Closer Contacted St. Louis About Potential Reunion

Published Dec 2, 2023

SCOTT NEVILLE

Scott Neville covers the St. Louis Cardinals for FanNation's "Inside The Cardinals" on Sports Illustrated. Before starting "Inside The Cardinals", Neville attended Merrimack College, where he earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Communication and Media with a minor in Marketing. Neville spent all four years with Merrimack's radio station WMCK, where he grew as a radio/podcast host and producer. His propensity for being in front of a microphone eventually expanded to film, where he produced multiple short films alongside his then-roommate and current co-worker Stephen Mottram. On a journey that began as a way to receive easy credits via film classes, he received a call from "It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia" star Charlie Day. Day advised him to make a feature-length film, which he completed his senior year. While writing the film, Neville completed an internship for United Way as part of their NFL Partnership Program. Neville ran the blog for a team of interns and hosted an internet show called "United Way's NFL Partnership Series" where he interviewed NFL alumni. After college Neville wrote for SB Nation's "Over The Monster," a Red Sox sister site of the flagship brand. His work would eventually lead him to a job as a content producer with NESN, where he would cover all sports. After developing as a writer with the top regional network in the world, he was given the opportunity to join FanNation and the Sports Illustrated Media Group as the publisher of "Inside The Red Sox." After a few months as the top Major League Baseball site in the program, Neville sought expansion and pitched "Inside The Cardinals," one of the newest additions to FanNation and the Sports Illustrated Media Group. The successful launch and quick rise of "Inside The Cardinals" led to Neville joining the Baseball Essential ownership group, a national baseball site under SIMG. Follow him on Twitter: @ScottNeville46 Email: nevilles@merrimack.edu