Cardinals Could Make One More Splash, Sign Starter With Career 3.27 ERA
The St. Louis Cardinals rotation failed to compete in 2023, contributing to one of the worst records in franchise history.
After the losses of Adam Wainwright to retirement, and Jack Flaherty plus Jordan Montgomery to last year's trade deadline, the club had some major holes to fill going into this winter.
The Cardinals acted early and aggressively to retool the roster by signing 2023 American League Cy Young runner-up Sonny Gray, former Cardinals pitcher Lance Lynn and right-hander Kyle Gibson.
President of baseball operations John Mozeliak has expressed contentment with the rejuvenated rotation but left the door open for future additions if the right opportunity arose.
A potential roster-bolstering option for the Cardinals could come from signing left-handed pitcher Hyun-jin Ryu -- who is an unrestricted free agent.
Ryu has a career 78-48 record with a 3.27 ERA, 934-to-236 strikeout-to-walk ratio, .250 batting average against and a 1.18 WHIP in 10 seasons pitched between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Toronto Blue Jays.
The 36-year-old has flown under the radar as one of the most underrated talents of the last decade and appears to have some juice left in him. Ryu missed most of last season after having Tommy John surgery at the end of 2022 but returned in August to record a 3.46 ERA across 11 starts.
St. Louis has missed chances to add firepower to their pitching arsenal and there are speculations that the newest acquisitions won't be enough.
Signing a mid-market pitcher like Ryu with an impressive track record would certainly increase the Cardinals' chances of turning things around in 2024 without having to break the bank to do so.
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