Ex-Red Sox Star Could Be Underrated Offseason Signing For Cardinals This Offseason

Should the Cardinals pursue the former Red Sox stud this offseason?

The St. Louis Cardinals likely will be linked to seemingly every starting pitcher available this offseason.

This isn't too surprising. After losing 91 games in 2023, clearly, there's something wrong. The biggest issue on the Cardinals' roster today is in the starting rotation. St. Louis already was dealing with issues and then traded away Jordan Montgomery and Jack Flaherty ahead of the 2023 Major League Baseball Trade Deadline.

St. Louis will be looking to fill three spots and already has been linked to stars like Minnesota Twins ace Sonny Gray and Philadelphia Phillies hurler Aaron Nola. While those two may end up being St. Louis' top targets, there are others out there. One who could make perfect sense is Detroit Tigers lefty Eduardo Rodríguez.

The 30-year-old has spent most of his career with the Boston Red Sox but signed as a free agent with the Tigers ahead of the 2022 campaign. Rodríguez has impressed in two seasons in Detroit and now likely will opt out of his contract and become a free agent again. The big lefty had arguably the best season of his career in 2023 compiling a 3.30 ERA in 26 starts. 

Rodríguez was the center of plenty of trade chatter ahead of the trade deadline but ultimately declined a move to the Los Angeles Dodgers. He was mentioned as a possible target for the Cardinals throughout the summer, but St. Louis' season took a nasty turn. Rodríguez is sure to have a solid market but likely will be cheaper than Gray and Nola. If the Cardinals were to land a top arm like the duo or someone like Orix Buffaloes ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto and also Rodríguez it could be the perfect start to fixing the rotation and getting back to the playoffs in 2024.  

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