Ex-Cardinals All-Star Signs Deal With National League Foe Amid Strange Season
The St. Louis Cardinals shipped off four players at the Major League Baseball Trade Deadline to kick off the month. One of them has already been let go by his new team and reportedly has signed with a third.
"The San Francisco Giants have just signed shortstop Paul DeJong to a major-league contract. He joins the team Wednesday," USA Today's Bob Nightengale tweeted Tuesday.
DeJong hit .233 with a .710 OPS (93 OPS+) in 81 games for the Cardinals this season leading up to the deadline. After being traded to the Toronto Blue Jays, he hit .068 with a .136 OPS (-62 OPS+) in 13 games.
He was then designated for assignment and is now looking to start fresh on the West Coast.
The Cardinals acquired right-hander Matt Svanson for DeJong. The 24-year-old is not a top prospect but had a ridiculous 1.11 ERA with a 39-to-11 strikeout-to-walk ratio, .167 batting average against and 0.93 WHIP between Low-A and High-A this season. St. Louis pushed him to Double-A Springfield -- where he has struggled in five appearances.
St. Louis did a great job of getting the highest possible prospect they could for DeJong, who appeared to be amid a resurgent season before falling off a cliff in Toronto.
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