The St. Louis Cardinals are facing a pivotal offseason when the regular season comes to a close. With Chaim Bloom taking over as the new president of baseball operations, he has quite a few decisions to make.
St. Louis has looked like a shell of themselves over the past few years. Their poor play has led to the fanbase making it quite clear they are ready for some change with season-low attendance numbers this year.
Bloom must shed some contracts this offseason and find opportunities to make organizational improvements. They have multiple players who could be a great trade chip, like Sonny Gray.
Gray has turned into St. Louis' ace, but he is also considered an expensive starting pitcher. He is in the middle of his three-year, $75 million deal, but may be the one player the club holds onto.
Cardinals urged to keep Sonny Gray
According to Sports Illustrated's Patrcik McAvoy, he views Sonny Gray as the one player the Cardinals should keep during the offseason, largely due to a low number of arms in the minors.
"Gray is going to be expensive next year. Even if the Cardinals do rebuild, that doesn't mean they need to get rid of all of the veterans on the roster. The Cardinals' pitching depth down in the minors is thin, thanks in large part to injuries. There's a world in which you could trade Gray – if he waives his no-trade clause – and sign some sort of cheap veteran [deal]. But Grey has been with the organization and has had success. Having him around the team's young pitchers, like Michael McGreevy, Matthew Liberatore, and maybe even Quinn Matthews, would be positive to help show them the ropes."
Gray would also be somebody who could help further develop the younger pitchers in the system. All in all, while he will be an expensive arm to keep, it makes a ton of sense for him to stay in St. Louis next season.