In the final stretch of his eighth season with the St. Louis Cardinals, a question in the back of everyone’s mind is what does next season hold for Matt Holliday?
Currently, Holliday is still on the DL, working to come back from a broken thumb courtesy of Cub’s left-hander, Mike Montgomery. He did opt to have surgery in the hopes of returning for a few more games this season. It’s possible that, with the way his season has gone so far, he might need those few games to try to get himself another season in St. Louis.
The 36-year-old sits at a batting average of .242, down from .279 last season, with 19 homeruns. Resigning him does come with some concerns. While he did not miss much of this season on the DL before now, he spent some of last season there, plagued by a hamstring injury. The fact is that he just isn’t as fast as he used to be, and left field might be a little much for him.
The franchise had him spend some time at first base while trying to find a way to prolong his career, but it seems that won’t be a permanent position for him. So now we have to look at his options.
The Cardinals could choose to spend $17 million and let him play another season. However, they could also choose to buy him out for $1 million and he’ll become a free agent.
If he becomes a free agent, he should consider going to an American League team to get a Designated Hitter position. He could still be an every day player with a strong bat. As much as Cardinals fans would love to see him wear the birds on the bat again next season, going to the AL would be a good deal for him.
So we are all waiting to see what the Cardinals franchise will do with him, but it might very well come down to his performance this season. If he is able to return for the last few games of the season, one thing is for sure. He is going to have to play some of the best games of his career and convince everyone that he deserves another season in a St. Louis uniform.
