Cardinals Infielder Elects Free Agency After Lackluster Stint In St. Louis

St. Louis will lose some depth heading into the offseason

Scott Neville | Oct 5, 2023

Cardinals Infielder Elects Free Agency After Lackluster Stint In St. Louis /

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St. Louis Cardinals

The St. Louis Cardinals do not have many players set to hit free agency following their midsummer fire sale of players on expiring contracts.

While the most impactful players departed months ago, there still will be some players headed out of the door. The Cardinals can now add a veteran super-utility man to the list of players hitting the open market.

Taylor Motter has elected free agency according to the MILB transaction log. The 34-year-old was a one-year wonder with St. Louis and did not thrive in his short stint.

Motter hit .171 with three extra-base hits, a pair of RBIs and a .443 OPS in 29 games. His 31-to-5 strikeout-to-walk ratio was telling over his 82 plate appearances.

The journeyman was used as an emergency utility man on the 40-man roster, which came in handy amid an injury-riddled year.

Motter hit .255 with 21 extra-base hits including eight home runs, 26 RBIs a .781 OPS in 56 games for Triple-A Memphis. He's a serviceable utility man but will be replaceable this winter should he move on.

This news will not send shock waves through the organization, though it does add one more need to the list.

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Published Oct 5, 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