How Cardinals seek to keep veterans, clear path for youth and raise a roster, not raze it
SAN ANTONIO — In the closing hours of his last general manager meetings atop baseball operations for the Cardinals, John Mozeliak had to dart "off campus" for an interview Wednesday night with a job candidate. He usually does not leave the host hotel much during these meetings, but then again, not much is usual about this year for him and these meetings for the Cardinals.
They annually arrive as a shopper — either tinkering with additions via trade or prepping for their offers to free agents, as they did a year ago for three starting pitchers. This year, in the resort's lobby, the Cardinals joked with one agent that they had no reason to meet.
They're not adding, not now.
They're remodeling.
But, Mozeliak said before leaving, that doesn't mean they're bailing.
"I still think we're going to be a better club than people think," Mozeliak said. "I think we'll surprise a few people. It's my final year, so I hope we can win a few games."
While much of the opening weeks of their offseason have focused on what the Cardinals will look like in the front office and on the financial ledger, the first significant move of how they'll appear on the field in 2025 came Wednesday. The Cardinals are shifting All-Star catcher Willson Contreras to first base and designated hitter as his primary positions. Mozeliak said it is "unlikely" that Contreras catches many games. That achieves the Cardinals' stated goal — like clearing playing time for younger catchers Pedro Pages and Ivan Herrera — and
signals an answer to a significant question facing the Cardinals this winter:
Which vets want to stick around?
One of four veteran players with no-trade clauses who sought to be Cardinals because of the club's history of contending, Contreras told the club that he would like to stay with St. Louis and not seek a trade. Mozeliak confirmed that exchange.
He has talked with the three others: Nolan Arenado, Sonny Gray and Miles Mikolas. Mozeliak declined to detail their wishes. Arenado's agent and Gray's agent declined to comment on the conversations. Mozeliak said at least one player was open to the club exploring interest from other clubs.
Gray told the Cardinals that his preference is to remain with them, two sources described. Some of the things that made them appealing a year ago when he signed a three-year, $75 million deal remain. And the right-hander has expressed interest in seeing where this "reset" and commitment to younger players leads.
The Cardinals have not advanced any trade discussions to a point where they go to a player with possibilities. As this month progresses, the Cardinals are expected to gauge which teams have interest in Arenado and what they will offer, multiple sources described. At that point, the Cardinals can take information about potential suitors to Arenado for his consideration.
'Might be a relief'
The pitch Mozeliak has for current players is similar to why he believes they may be a "better club." The Cardinals have made the financial cuts they sought by declining options, letting free agents go and shedding more than $60 million from this past season's opening day, 26-player roster.
They have opened avenues for younger players like Herrera, Pages, Lars Nootbaar, Jordan Walker and Andre Pallante for guaranteed playing time. They have also, internally, sought to step back from their long-running brand after two consecutive seasons of falling short of its October-or-bust goal.
"I do feel like the pressures of always thinking you have to get to October, play in October, is tough for some of the younger players," Mozeliak said. "And I think now with the notion of expectations are a little lower, I think a lot of these younger guys are going to be able to breathe and play with a little more freedom. That's when we'll get a sense of really, 'Where are they?' I feel like from a pure clubhouse standpoint that might be a relief."
An aspect Mozeliak is referencing without saying is what the Post-Dispatch has previously referred to as the club's "opportunity gap."
The urgency to win at times led to decisions that limited playing time for younger players, whether that was chasing a center fielder like Dexter Fowler in free agency, trading younger players for shorter-term answers or being impatient with the performance of a young player when the team was struggling.
"We were always rushing to find the next better thing," Mozeliak conceded Wednesday. "And now we're going to say: No, we're going to give it a little time to see what we really have. We're going to let them go play and find out if they can make those adjustments, and let's see if they can do it for us instead of us giving up on them and they're not doing it for someone else."
While moving Contreras from a position where there is youth to another position where there could be youth, the Cardinals see that as consistent with the goal.
And, Mozeliak stressed, better for Contreras' career.
"We think not catching will make him a better hitter," Mozeliak said.
The idea spawned from the team's medical and training staff following a year when Contreras was limited by injury to 84 games. Those included an opponent's swing fracturing his left forearm and a pitch breaking his finger while he was batting. When he was healthy, Contreras was the Cardinals' leading hitter, and before the fractured forearm, he was charging toward another All-Star Game invite.
Contreras finished the year batting .262 with a .380 on-base percentage and .468 slugging percentage, good for an .848 OPS. Those were superb numbers for a catcher. At first base? Still superb.
When compared with everyday first basemen in the majors, Contreras' average would rank ninth, his on-base percentage second and his slugging fourth. Contreras' OPS would rank fourth right behind World Series MVP Freddie Freeman's .854.
Contreras has played 11 games at first base in the majors and fewer than 52 innings, so defense will be part of this development. Mozeliak insisted that moving Contreras does not contradict the youth focus. Left-handed batter Alec Burleson will also see time at first, and the lineup can accommodate both with either appearing at DH.
"When you look at our club, obviously you can see a team," Mozeliak said. "It's not like, 'Oh, boy, you have no bullpen.' We have people. We have guys. Our team is not going to look all that different, right? There will be some changes. Part of this is going to be a guy like Pallante is going to get the opportunity to be a starter. Obviously (Steven) Matz is someone that we are hopeful he can rebound physically. We traded for (Erick) Fedde, and we think a lot of him. (Rookie Michael) McGreevy, right now, I don't think it's necessarily like guaranteed he's in our rotation just because of who we have in front. But it wouldn't shock me if he's on the team in some form."
Or, as the winter plays out, if he's in the rotation.
Mozeliak said reducing the payroll further would give the Cardinals some "breathing room" headed into spring training. They will explore trades involving Matz and, if moved by the offer, Fedde. Agent Scott Boras on Wednesday said he expects the free-agent starters to move first, and if that market is rich, the Cardinals have cost-effective options to trade. The Cardinals will not be active in the free-agent market for starting pitchers.
If there's an exception, it's veteran Kyle Gibson, with whom the Cardinals want to keep in touch even after declining his $12 million option.
Gibson's deal was one the Cardinals sped toward during the GM meetings a year ago. This year, the meetings had a different feel and different purpose for the Cardinals — like slipping away from the site to conduct interviews for staff, not seeking out agents to talk pitching staff. They've made their direction clear to peers and others, but when asked Wednesday how hard he planned to press the "reset" button, Mozeliak referred to his final year not being a lost year.
The Cardinals seek to raise a roster, not raze one.
"I'm not like looking to blow this thing up," Mozeliak said.
And then he had to go.
Lead baseball writer
