Possible Cincinnati Reds target, Kyle Gibson joins St Louis Cardinals

Reds free agent pitcher options beginning to narrow

The Cincinnati Reds quest for pitching continues to see possibilities move to their division rival St Louis Cardinals.

Kyle Gibson is joining the Cardinals on a one-year deal with a club option for 2025. He will make $12 million next season. Gibson could have been a fit for the Reds rotation and this move seems to signal an interesting strategy for the Reds rivals.

Last season was pretty standard for Gibson. He made 33 starts for the Baltimore Orioles and pitched 192 innings. He sported a 4.73 ERA for the year which was just slightly worse than his career average. Gibson has been the very essence of consistency as he has made at least 25 starts in each season of his career, outside of the shortened 2020 season.

The Reds need that kind of consistency in their starting rotation, although there are other options in the free agent market they could turn to. This is more evidence that the Reds will need to be competitive in their offers to free agents as Gibson signed for above what Spotrac.com had his projected value to be. They had him signing for just over $8 million per year. 

This signing follows the Cardinals addition of Lance Lynn to a very similar deal. It would appear the Cardinals are trying to add innings while hedging their bets. If the season goes south for St Louis it would be easy to trade Lynn's and Gibson's contracts at the trade deadline. 

Despite the Cardinals active offseason, this may be a bit encouraging for the Reds as neither move has been for an ace and both moves show the Cardinals aren't sold out for 2024.

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