While the MLB Commissioner’s Office is being overloaded with phone calls, completing deals from the non-waiver trade deadline, the Cardinals have appeared to make all the moves they wanted to. The Cardinals acquired relievers Steve Cishek and Jonathan Broxton, along with 1B/OF Brandon Moss in three separate moves.
The MLB trade deadline is by far the best in sports. Teams are constantly moving players and it’s easier to do because there is a lack of a salary cap. The NFL, NBA and even the NHL cannot put up a crazy deadline like the MLB can. With that said, the Cardinals saw major players getting moved over the past few days.
- Troy Tulowitzki was traded to the Blue Jays in package that included Jose Reyes
- David Price also moved to the Blue Jays. Then they got busy again and got Ben Revere from the Phillies.
- Johnny Cueto went to the Royals, along with Ben Zobrist
- The Dodgers acquired Mat Latos and Alex Wood to help their rotation as part of a 13 player trade
- Cole Hamels was shipped to the Rangers in a classic blockbuster.
- Carlos Gomez was first going to the Mets, but then ended up with the Astros
- Yoenis Cespedes from the Tigers to the Mets
- Even the Cubs made a move for Dan Haren
These were just some of the trades that happened over the course of the past few weeks. With all that star power being switched and the Blue Jays and Royals going all-in, Cardinal Nation has to feel underwhelmed and disappointed that the club didn’t make a move for a power bat such as Cespedes or Carlos Gonzalez.
However, the Cardinals rarely make a big deadline acquisition, yet the moves they make tend to work for the best. While the the Cardinals offense is certainly mediocre, the pitching has been fantastic. The question moving forward will be if the club can put up enough runs for the pitching. At times, there will be frustration.
But, this was a sellers market and with the Holliday injury teams were not offering a discount. There would have to be an overpay to get the players necessary and that is something Mozeliak wasn’t prepared to do. There is nothing wrong with that.
Brandon Moss fills several needs for the Cardinals. His numbers aren’t flashy and they probably aren’t going to be. But, I wouldn’t be surprised if he performs slightly better than his career numbers at Oakland. Moss can play first base and outfield, which is very important while Holliday is on the sidelines. The bench becomes stronger, especially when Holliday returns the team could have either Moss himself, Reynolds or Piscotty coming off the bench to pinch-hit in a tight situation. There is value in that. Moss also has another year of arbitration and will make somewhere along the lines of $6.5MM, but he has power. The Cardinals could elect to keep him for another season or trade him and get value in return.
But, let’s forget about the Moss trade for a moment. Let’s focus on Cishek and Broxton.
Both Cishek and Broxton have served as closers during their careers in the MLB. Cishek had back-to-back 30 save seasons with the Marlins. Broxton saved games for the Dodgers, Royals and the Reds. Each pitcher has had a share of struggles during the 2015 campaign. It was so bad for Cishek he was actually sent down to Triple-A to figure out his problems.
Each pitcher has been much better as of late and each pitcher cost relatively little in order to be acquired.
So what makes each move so valuable?
Jordan Walden is set to make his return to the Cardinals shortly. So imagine finishing the game with Broxton, Cishek, Walden and Rosenthal? Oh yeah. Kevin Siegrist has done pretty well for himself this season too. Do you understand yet?
Remember some of the major concerns for the Cardinals before the season began? Will Michael Wacha and Carlos Martinez be able to pitch an entire season?
Problem addressed and most likely solved. It’s difficult to give a starter an additional day-off. It can throw off their rhythm and with the team competiting for a tough NL Central championship, they can’t afford to miss. Now the Cardinals can continue to throw them during their regular schedule and manage their innings and pitches, keeping them more fresh down the stretch and during the playoffs.
What else?
In a five game and seven game series the Cardinals can go to their effective bullpen starting in the 5th or the 6th inning. Now I won’t pretend the Cardinals have a historically great bullpen like the Royals did last season. But, their ace was James Shields and after that their rotation was largely unimpressive. They made it to the World Series largely because of their bullpen shrinking the games. Really, the should have won if it wasn’t for a historic Madison Bumgarner. And yes, the Royals offense was very lackluster.
Yeah, I get it. They have to score runs to win. But, if you can shut a team down and shrink the games your offense has more time. If the Cardinals can pull together 3-4 runs per game in the playoffs, how can you not consider them the favorite?
If you’re a fan of Jayson Stark (and you should be!). He had an interesting stat about the 2011 NLCS. The Cardinals bullpen had more outs than the starting rotation. The Cardinals have always realized the bullpen is important and these moves show that they still do.
I understand the frustration of a lack of offense and lack of a big move. But, Mozeliak gave up relatively little and still addressed an offensive concern. He is keeping most of the farm and will have payroll flexibility in the off-season.
The Cardinals are going to make the playoffs. If you were to bet on that you wouldn’t get much money because that’s obvious. These bullpen moves are classic for a series.
The moves aren’t going to grab headlines. The moves aren’t flashy. They are smart. They are savvy. They will help.
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