The St. Louis Cardinals are currently in first place of the NL Central, but plenty have felt that they needed to do more this month, and their moves or lack thereof has been roundly criticized across the web. In fact, they spent a good portion of this year in second or third place as they had hovered around .500 before experiencing a second-half surge that has helped them place atop of this division.
The question that lingers is: did the Cardinals make enough moves prior to or at the trade deadline this month?
What is a fact is that the Cardinals did not make any groundbreaking moves this month.
Right now, the Cardinals are 23rd in Team OPS with .725, but are 9th in all of the majors with a 4.12 ERA. Speaking of ERAs in baseball is startlingly high this year, don't you think? But a deeper dive has them tied for 16th with Miami in FIP (Fielding Independent Pitching) at 4.47, and they rank in the middle of the pack in walks and strikeouts per 9.
One small, but significant move is that they demoted Harrison Bader to AAA, which will allow the other outfielders a chance to prove if they can play well when given extended opportunities in the big leagues. Though Bader is a very good fielder, he had not been hitting well at all, as he has been sporting a paltry .195 batting average to go with a lackluster .648 OPS, so that may be a move that could help pay off for both the Cards and Bader. Bader will need to fix his swing, and it could give the other outfielders more playing time.
More pitching looked to be the answer, as both the pitching staff and bullpen have at times struggled with their control and command. Another solid hitter could help, but that was not obtained, and there was some fury over the Cards having dealt Jedd Gyorko today.
But there was one particularly interesting detail to note. Baseball writer Jenifer Langosch posted this tweet, detailing Cardinals' acquisitions from 2016 to the present, and each time prior to this year, they have missed the playoffs.
This month, the Cardinals.....
Traded for left-handed reliever Zac Rosscup by giving cash to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Claimed left-handed reliever Adalberto Mejia off waivers from the Los Angeles Angels.
Traded for left-handed reliever Tony Cingrani and righthanded minor league pitcher Jeffry Abreu by dealing Jedd Gyorko to the Los Angeles Dodgers. I've reviewed the Jedd Gyorko for Tony Cingrani swap involving international bonus pool money in a separate article, but now this is an article that is about if the Cardinals did enough this month and made enough solid moves to ensure that this team is a legitimate contender.
Individually, these moves may seem reasonable, as they are looking for a lefty that can help the bullpen and strike hitters out. But these are all rather, very small, ho-hum moves, and none of these moves are a game-changer. None of the players they traded for or claimed are All-Stars or have that sort of potential, and the pitchers they acquired this month are probably competing for a situational left-handed spot in the Cards' bullpen.
President of Baseball Operations John Mozeliak is a calculated businessman that tends to make rational moves and tends to not to make big risks, which has its positives and negatives. The current team may be talented enough to make the playoffs, but without getting an upper-echelon piece in the trades this year, but it could be tough for them to go all the way, especially if Paul Goldschmidt ends up treading back to how he played in the first half of the season.
The other angle is that they did not want to make a bad move, as bad trades can cost top prospects, cap space, and draft picks, and bad trades can set teams back years. The Cardinals did not make a big move this month, and the question if there was a big move that could have been made without hurting the Cards in the short or long term, the answer to that may be one we will never know.
But no matter how you spin it, the fact is the Cardinals traded for spare parts players, and to answer your question, as a whole, the answer is no. The Cards did not do enough at the trade deadline, and will have to hope that the current roster, plus some additions of left-handed relievers and call-ups will be enough to get them the title this year.
The question that lingers is: did the Cardinals make enough moves prior to or at the trade deadline this month?
What is a fact is that the Cardinals did not make any groundbreaking moves this month.
Right now, the Cardinals are 23rd in Team OPS with .725, but are 9th in all of the majors with a 4.12 ERA. Speaking of ERAs in baseball is startlingly high this year, don't you think? But a deeper dive has them tied for 16th with Miami in FIP (Fielding Independent Pitching) at 4.47, and they rank in the middle of the pack in walks and strikeouts per 9.
One small, but significant move is that they demoted Harrison Bader to AAA, which will allow the other outfielders a chance to prove if they can play well when given extended opportunities in the big leagues. Though Bader is a very good fielder, he had not been hitting well at all, as he has been sporting a paltry .195 batting average to go with a lackluster .648 OPS, so that may be a move that could help pay off for both the Cards and Bader. Bader will need to fix his swing, and it could give the other outfielders more playing time.
More pitching looked to be the answer, as both the pitching staff and bullpen have at times struggled with their control and command. Another solid hitter could help, but that was not obtained, and there was some fury over the Cards having dealt Jedd Gyorko today.
But there was one particularly interesting detail to note. Baseball writer Jenifer Langosch posted this tweet, detailing Cardinals' acquisitions from 2016 to the present, and each time prior to this year, they have missed the playoffs.
This month, the Cardinals.....
Traded for left-handed reliever Zac Rosscup by giving cash to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Claimed left-handed reliever Adalberto Mejia off waivers from the Los Angeles Angels.
Traded for left-handed reliever Tony Cingrani and righthanded minor league pitcher Jeffry Abreu by dealing Jedd Gyorko to the Los Angeles Dodgers. I've reviewed the Jedd Gyorko for Tony Cingrani swap involving international bonus pool money in a separate article, but now this is an article that is about if the Cardinals did enough this month and made enough solid moves to ensure that this team is a legitimate contender.
Individually, these moves may seem reasonable, as they are looking for a lefty that can help the bullpen and strike hitters out. But these are all rather, very small, ho-hum moves, and none of these moves are a game-changer. None of the players they traded for or claimed are All-Stars or have that sort of potential, and the pitchers they acquired this month are probably competing for a situational left-handed spot in the Cards' bullpen.
President of Baseball Operations John Mozeliak is a calculated businessman that tends to make rational moves and tends to not to make big risks, which has its positives and negatives. The current team may be talented enough to make the playoffs, but without getting an upper-echelon piece in the trades this year, but it could be tough for them to go all the way, especially if Paul Goldschmidt ends up treading back to how he played in the first half of the season.
The other angle is that they did not want to make a bad move, as bad trades can cost top prospects, cap space, and draft picks, and bad trades can set teams back years. The Cardinals did not make a big move this month, and the question if there was a big move that could have been made without hurting the Cards in the short or long term, the answer to that may be one we will never know.
But no matter how you spin it, the fact is the Cardinals traded for spare parts players, and to answer your question, as a whole, the answer is no. The Cards did not do enough at the trade deadline, and will have to hope that the current roster, plus some additions of left-handed relievers and call-ups will be enough to get them the title this year.
:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/56606969/usa_today_10238862.0.jpg "Picture courtesy of Patrick Gorski of USA Today Sports, and SB Nation's True Blue LA")