JUST IN: St. Louis Cardinals set to resign former key player on a 4 years contract worth $142m

 

It took until two days before Opening Day, but all the major free agents are finally signed.

Once again, the Cardinals chose to sit back and let it happen without acting. Jordan Montgomery signing a one-year, $25 million deal with the Diamondbacks is something they totally could have done.

While I was impressed to see the Cardinals sign Sonny Gray, they needed a second top-level starter, either in free agency or on the trade market.

Sure, they could still trade for Shane Bieber, which is something I would really like. But Montgomery came off the market at such an affordable price for the Cardinals, and it’s honestly frustrating that the Cardinals didn’t even bother to make an effort.

As many have pointed out, including Katie Woo, Montgomery was signed at the same AAV as Gray. Yes, I understand that the main reason the Cardinals didn’t do this is because Bill DeWitt is too stubborn to open up his checkbook, but this was so doable.

And in letting Montgomery sign elsewhere, the Cardinals blew their opportunity to be a World Series contender, at least for now.

As we know, these days it requires at least two top starters to be a true contender. Instead of trying for Montgomery and waiting a little bit, the Cardinals settled for two bargain additions with Lance Lynn and Kyle Gibson, both of whom looked horrible this spring.

Did Montgomery not want to pitch in St. Louis? Possibly. We can’t be sure of it, but we do know one thing. The Cardinals had zero interest, and it’s all because of their unwillingness to change.

I think at a certain point we all knew they were going to be done adding, but the fact that they chose Lynn and Gibson over someone proven like Montgomery shows that the organization doesn’t have its priorities straight.

If DeWitt wants profit and to see fans in the stands, he needs to prioritize winning. The same goes for John Mozeliak. Times are changing, and there are a lot of teams that are hungrier than the Cardinals. That needs to change as well.

The Cardinals, and other teams for that matter, blew a golden opportunity to become a true contender, and it hurts more knowing that Montgomery signed at such an affordable price, one the Cardinals could have, and should have paid if they truly cared about winning anything.

I don’t see this current team winning more than 85 games as currently constructed or getting any further than the NLDS. I hope I’m wrong, but I’m tired of banking on hope like the Cardinals have for so many years.