Cardinals, Marlins discussed Pablo Lopez and more

Cardinals, Marlins discussed Pablo Lopez and more

[ad_1]

The Cardinals and Marlins have held “at least preliminary” talks regarding Miami’s swarm of young starters, reports Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. Pablo Lopez, though on paper, it’s easy to argue that nearly all of the Marlins’ available starters fit in St. Louis. Each Lopez, Jesus Luzaldo, Trevor Rogers When Edward Cabrera I’ve seen his name pop up in business talks lately.However, it looks like Miami has no plans to deal with the Ace. sandy alcantarawho the Cardinals actually traded with Fish Zach Galen in the transaction you sent Marcel Ozuna From Miami to St. Louis.

The Cardinals have a solid rotation on the surface, each with Jordan Montgomery, Miles Michaelas, Adam Wainwright, Stephen Matz When Jack Flaherty Likely to be in the starting five. Options for depth behind groups include Dakota Hudson, Jake Woodford, Matthew Liberatore, Zach Thompson When Andre Palantethe latter two did well in the 2022 bullpen setting. Gordon Gracefo, Michael McGreevy When tinkthough none of that group is on the 40-man roster yet.

That said, the card could lose nearly all of its rotation after the season. Wainwright is set to retire, and Michaelas, Montgomery and Flaherty are each free agents next winter. Only Mats, whose four-year deal covers the 2022-25 season, has been signed or managed beyond the current season.

In that sense, there’s good reason for the card to pursue a starter that it can control until at least the 2024 season. There’s certainly an internal hope of being able to grab a spot in the rotation, but it has a lot to fall back on. I’m still looking for rotation spots for – maybe three.

Lopez, 27 years old as of March, has a 3.52 ERA in his last 340 big league innings and will be subject to arbitration throughout the 2024 campaign. Even younger, his 25-year-old Luzaldo performed well in 2022, posting a 3.32 ERA and he had a 30% strikeout rate, but a forearm injury cost him 100 and 1/3 of his innings. was limited to He remains under team control until 2026. This is the same amount of club control as the 2021 Rookie of the Year finalist and the same amount of club control as the 25-year-old Rodgers, who stumbled on a 5.47 ERA in 107 frames in 2022, in his second full MLB campaign. Meanwhile, the 24-year-old Cabrera has six years of club dominance left, posting a 3.01 ERA in 71 2/3 innings in 2022.

None of that bundle is expensive, with Lopez’s $5.45 million salary leading the way. Either way, finances shouldn’t be a big consideration for the Cardinals. They’re on pace to roughly match his $163 million salary last year, and baseball division president John Mozeliak has previously demonstrated the ability to increase the salary. From Miami’s perspective, their projected salary of $103 million would be the second highest in club history.

The Marlins are known for looking to improve their lineup and have prioritized center field and catchers since last offseason. Jacob Stallings While we saw the former Gold Glove winner turn around with a disappointing .233/.292/.292 batting average ahead of the 2022 season, his typical high-end defensive record has also been cratered. rice field. Center field is still an unaddressed need, and it seems likely that Miami will hire a player better suited to the corner (Brian De La Cruz) and wish you the best this season.

On the other hand, the Cardinals have many outfielders. Tyler O’neal, Dylan Carlson When Lars Notvaal Probably lined up left to right at the MLB level. (Rosenthal suggests that, of the many, he is the least likely Nootbaar to change owners.) jordan walkerperhaps largely off-limits to trade talks, looms behind the group. Alec BurlesonOn the other hand, he already has MLB experience and is also a fellow outfielder. Moises Gomez I posted a big number on the top minors.Behind the plate, the card is valued for its catch prospects Ivan Herrerawho currently do not exactly have a clear path to a regular role Wilson Contreras I have a 5 year contract.

Indeed, the Cards and Marlins seem to have converging needs that could lead to a trade, but there are also no signs that negotiations are particularly heated. Given the league’s lack of options, it’s likely that we’ve discussed available starters with more than half the league. Even Card and the Marlins themselves aren’t sure if a deal will be finalized at this point, but it’s still worth noting that both parties had at least some surface-level talks.

[ad_2]

Source link