The St. Louis Cardinals had their worst season in decades and missed the postseason.
Pitching was a problem all year, as was overall depth.
They now get a chance for a clean start, as the 2023-24 offseason is already underway.
In fact, they have made their first two roster moves.
“We have acquired RHP Riley O’Brien from the Seattle Mariners in exchange for cash considerations and claimed INF/OF Jared Young from the Chicago Cubs. Our 40-player roster now stands at 40,” the team announced on Twitter.
We have acquired RHP Riley O’Brien from the Seattle Mariners in exchange for cash considerations and claimed INF/OF Jared Young from the Chicago Cubs.
Our 40-player roster now stands at 40. #STLCards pic.twitter.com/0WQbLmzajt
— St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) November 6, 2023
O’Brien is a pitcher who had previously been with the Mariners, having made his MLB debut in 2021.
He spent the majority of the 2023 campaign in Triple-A, with a 2.29 ERA in 55 innings.
He could be useful from the bullpen, but he needs to improve his control as he can easily lose the strike zone.
He is 28 years old and will likely fight for a spot on the active roster in spring training.
Young, also 28, is a first baseman who made his MLB debut in 2022 and played in the bigs in 2023.
In 16 games and 47 plate appearances at the MLB level this season, he homered twice and had an 88 wRC+ (100 is league-average performance).
He homered 21 times in Triple-A Iowa, though, with a .310 average and a 147 wRC+.
Young had some strikeout issues, but carries more potential and a better chance to reach it than O’Brien.
In any case, both pickups have a long way to go if they want to make the Cardinals Opening Day roster next year.
