Cardinals Receive Depressing "F" Grade For Offseason By Top MLB Insider

St. Louis didn't make any splash moves

Apr 14, 2016; St. Louis, MO, USA; A St. Louis Cardinals batting helmet sits on a step during a game against the Milwaukee Brewers at Busch Stadium. The Cardinals won the game 7-0. Mandatory Credit: Billy Hurst-Imagn Images / Billy Hurst-Imagn Images

The St. Louis Cardinals have missed the postseason over the last two seasons, and they didn’t exactly have an explosive offseason of new additions.

The Cardinals have a rich, 11-championship history and are blessed with a passionate fan base, but they've been in a rut for 24 months. St. Louis finished 83-79 last season but still ended up 10 games short of the Milwaukee Brewers for the division lead. In 2023, the Redbirds finished 71-91, their worst record since the mid-1990s.

Are the Cardinals going to turn things around and get out of this historically bad phase for the franchise? Their front office doesn't appear to be motivated to do so.

The Athletic’s Jim Bowden didn’t mince words or play nice when evaluating St. Louis’ offseason on Saturday.

Bowden gave the Cardinals an “F” grade for their offseason and criticized St. Louis for doing close to nothing in terms of moves.

“Best move: Crickets,” Bowden wrote.

“They did not make a single free-agent signing or any trades that moved the meter,” Bowden continued.

“They focused on trying to trade Nolan Arenado, and they couldn’t even do that. How will Arenado fare at the start of the season? When will he get traded, and to whom?”

Bowden also predicted that the Cardinals will finish in last place in the National League Central.

Perhaps some of St. Louis’ young talent like Masyn Winn will surprise people and propel the Cardinals to a competitive season. That might be the only outcome capable of saving manager Oli Marmol from being canned in the coming months.

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