The St. Louis Cardinals had their worst season in recent memory.
They finished with a horrible 71-91 record, last in the NL Central despite having perennial All-Stars Nolan Arenado and Paul Goldschmidt on their roster.
Pitching was clearly their biggest problem: it was evident all year long.
Their 4.79 collective ERA ranked 24th out of 30 MLB teams in 2023.
To return to contention, ownership and the front office knew they had to do something about that subpar rotation.
They went out and signed Lance Lynn and Kyle Gibson to fill the back of the unit.
They still needed an ace, and they got one on Monday.
The Cardinals and Sonny Gray are in agreement on a 3-year deal, per @Ken_Rosenthal pic.twitter.com/tpVIQHrM2h
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) November 27, 2023
FOX Sports: MLB shared a Ken Rosenthal report, indicating that 2023 AL Cy Young candidate Sonny Gray is signing with the Cards.
The terms of the contract dictate St. Louis will pay Gray $75 million for three years of his services.
That was about market value for a top starter who had one of his most dominant seasons in 2023 with the Minnesota Twins.
His 2.79 ERA in 184 innings helped confirm his ace status around the league, even though his win-loss record was a somewhat disappointing 8-8.
He struck out 183 hitters against just 55 walks.
Now, the Cards rotation has Gray, Lynn, Gibson, Miles Mikolas, and Steven Matz.
It’s certainly a veteran unit (Gray is 34) but is much better than what they had last year.
Much better.
With a few more acquisitions and some luck with injuries (and a projected decline by the Milwaukee Brewers), there is path back to contention for the Cardinals.
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