The St. Louis Cardinals have been active in MLB free agency this winter, signing three starting pitchers to fortify their rotation for the 2024 season. There’s still a lot of room for improvement and amid rumors of payroll limitations, the Cardinals’ front office is now providing perspective on where things stand.
St. Louis hasn’t been one of the highest-spending MLB teams in years. Over the last five seasons, the Cardinals have ranked outside the top 10 in payroll, often trailing the highest-spending teams by $90-plus million. While it was tolerated when the team was competitive, recent years have influenced fans’ reactions to the organization’s cautious spending.
- St. Louis Cardinals record 2023: 71-91
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However, the level of aggressiveness has ramped up a bit in St. Louis this offseason. After not reaching the National League Division Series in four consecutive years, the Cardinals went out and signed Sonny Gray, Kyle Gibson and Lance Lynn to improve their starting rotation.
Amid fans clamoring for even more spending, with several quality free agents still available, Cardinals’ president of baseball operations John Mozeliak offered some insight into the club’s payroll and the possibility of more moves.
“The budget question always comes up. Payroll question. It’s probably not as black and white as people would like to think it is. Depending on what the type of investment might look like, it’s something we can always take to ownership if we feel like it’s important or a good value. But do I think there is some room in the payroll if we needed to? Yes.”
St. Louis Cardinals president John Mozeliak on potentially increasing payroll (H/T Ben Frederickson)
St. Louis Cardinals payroll by year
- 2024: $168.811 million (11th in MLB)
- 2023: $153.793 million (17th in MLB)
- 2022: $156.422 million (13th in MLB)
- 2021: $151.469 million (11th in MLB)
Part of the reason some fans had concerns over the Cardinals’ payroll had to do with the recent hiring of Chaim Bloom. Brought on in an advisory role, Bloom last served as the chief baseball officer overseeing the Boston Red Sox’s efforts to build a roster on a reduced payroll.
One other important note comes from Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat. Mozeliak indicated that he’s still committed to retiring in the near future and developing a succession plan for the Cardinals’ organization. While a specific successor hasn’t been named, Bloom is working closely with team chairman Bill DeWitt II on planning out the Cardinals’ long-term future.