2024 St. Louis Cardinals
LeagueNational League
DivisionCentral
BallparkBusch Stadium
CitySt. Louis, Missouri
Record0–0 (–)
OwnersWilliam DeWitt Jr.
PresidentBill DeWitt III
General managersMike Girsch
ManagersOliver Marmol
TelevisionBally Sports Midwest
(Chip Caray, Jim Edmonds, Brad Thompson)
RadioKMOX NewsRadio 1120
St. Louis Cardinals Radio Network
(John Rooney, Rick Horton, Mike Claiborne)
StatsESPN.com
BB-reference
Seasons

The 2024 St. Louis Cardinals season will be the 143rd season for the St. Louis Cardinals, a Major League Baseball franchise in St. Louis, Missouri. It is the 133rd season for the Cardinals in the National League and their 19th at Busch Stadium III.

Previous season

The Cardinals finished the 2023 season 71–91, which was good for a .438 winning percentage. The season was the first losing one for St. Louis since the 2007 season, and finishing twenty games below .500 resulted in the Cardinals finishing last in their division for the first time since the 1990 season. The Cardinals also missed the postseason for the first time since the 2018 season, snapping a four year postseason appearance streak.

Offseason

As announced before the start of the season, 42-year old Adam Wainwright retired after an 18 year career with the Cardinals, which included three All-Star selections, two Gold Gloves, a Silver Slugger, and four top-three Cy Young Award finishes.[1] Despite struggling with both injury and performance his final season, Wainwright was able to join the 200 win club which he achieved through a 1–0 victory against the Milwaukee Brewers on September 18, 2023.[2]

The team added former Cardinals' infielder Daniel Descalso (2010–14) as its new bench coach on November 20, 2023, replacing Joe McEwing who got a job in the front office, assisting president of baseball operations John Mozeliak.[3]

To start the offseason, it was made clear by John Mozeliak that the Cardinals were looking to add two or three starting pitchers to the 2024 squad, either by trade or free agency.[4] This objective was a result of the very poor performance of the team's pitching in 2023, who combined for the 7th-worst ERA in the league at 4.79,[5] numerous injuries during the season, and the departing of several starters at the trade deadline and end of season, including Jordan Montgomery, Jack Flaherty, and Adam Wainwright.

On November 21, 2023, the team officially announced that former Cardinals' starter Lance Lynn, 36 (2011–15, 2017) will return in a one-year deal for $11 million, with performance incentives and a 2025 club option.[6] The same day, the team signed Kyle Gibson, 36, a former Missouri Tigers college pitcher (2006) to a one-year deal for $12 million, also with a 2025 club option.[7][8]

On November 27, 2023, it was announced by Jon Heyman on X and later confirmed by the club that starting pitcher Sonny Gray, 34, had been signed to a three-year deal for $75 million, which also includes a fourth-year 2027 club option that includes a $5 million buyout, and a no-trade clause. Gray had a spectacular 2023 campaign, which resulted in an 8–8 record over 32 starts with a 2.79 ERA, his third All-Star selection, and a 2nd-place finish in AL Cy Young voting.[9] Later that day, Gray was officially introduced to media and signed.[10]

On November 30, former Gold Glove catcher Yadier Molina turned down an offer from the Cardinals to be a full-time coach for the catchers because of family matters. It would have been most helpful for the young backup catcher, Iván Herrera, and Willson Contreras for help in game planning, and get familiar with the pitching staff. The fact that he will be a part-time advisor is still reassuring as he agreed to that for Spring Training games, and at times during the regular season. He could agree to be a full-time coach in 2025.[11]

On December 5, the Cardinals in the second annual draft lottery for the 2024 Major League Baseball draft, will get the #7 draft pick that initially projected them with the #5 pick.[12]

The Rule 5 draft on December 6, at the Winter Meetings, the Cardinals selected RHP Ryan Fernandez, 25, 6-ft, 0-in., 170-lbs., from Boston.[13][14]

On the same day, retired Cardinals' Gold Glove catcher Yadier Molina agreed to be a Special Assistant to the president of baseball operations John Mozeliak. Mozeliak said in his explanation of his duties, "It’s not going to be catching-specific, but that will be his forte. But if he can help pitchers or even spend time with coaches and share his wisdom, that’s the point of this."[15]

On December 8, the Cardinals traded frequently-injured OF'er Tyler O'Neill (72G in 2023, 96G in 2022) to the Boston for two pitchers: RH reliever Nick Robertson, 25 (6-ft. 6-in., 265-lbs.), and minor league RH prospect Victor Santos, 23 (6-ft. 1-in., 222-lbs). Robertson was added to the 40-man roster, while Santos will be assigned to a minor league roster later.[16]

On December 11, the team finalized its coaching staff in adding a new coaching position, the Assistant Pitching Coach. They hired former Cardinals' LH reliever Dean Kiekhefer (2016). He was pitching coach for Single-A Palm Beach in 2021, and assistant pitching coordinator for player development in 2022 and 2023. The Cardinals have also promoted Daniel “DC” MacLea to the staff as the major league Coordinator, Technology and Systems. MacLea has been with the Cardinals since 2018, first as a performance specialist from 2018–21 and then as technology integration coordinator for player development in 2022-23.[17]

On January 5, 2024, the team acquired RH reliever Andrew Kittredge, 33 (34 on Mar. 17) for corner OF'er Richie Palacios in a trade with the Tampa Bay Rays. Kittredge was 2-0, 3.09 ERA, 14 games, 6 GF, 1 Save, 2 BB, and 10 SO in 11.2 IP (1.200 WHIP). He was an All-Star in 2021, before missing parts of 2022 and 2023, returning in Aug. 2023 from Tommy John surgery. He held opponents to a 0.683 O-OPS (0.300 O-OBP% + 0.383 O-SLG%), and a 0.255 O-BA in his 14 games.[18]

On January 8, the Cardinals hired Chaim Bloom, 40, as an advisor to John Mozeliak. Bloom was the Boston Red Sox's chief baseball officer from 2019-2023. He will work under Mozeliak, advising on a variety of baseball operations areas. Mozeliak said in explaining the move, "I have known Chaim for a long time and feel that this is a great opportunity for the St. Louis Cardinals. It will be good to get an outside perspective of our organization from someone who is as well-respected as Chaim. Having a fresh set of eyes on all aspects of our baseball operations should be helpful.” Before he became Boston's chief baseball officer, Bloom spent 15 years (2005–19) in the Tampa Bay Rays' baseball operations department, including the final three as the club’s senior vice president of baseball operations.[19]

Roster

St. Louis Cardinals 2024 spring training roster
40-man roster Non-roster invitees Coaches/Other

Pitchers

Catchers

Infielders

Outfielders

Pitchers

Catchers

  • 79 Aaron Antonini
  • 96 Leonardo Bernal
  • 80 Jimmy Crooks
  • 98 Sammy Hernandez
  • 97 Carlos Linarez
  • 78 Nick Raposo
  • 81 Wade Stauss

Infielders

Outfielders

Manager

Coaches



40 active, 0 inactive, 26 non-roster invitees

7-, 10-, or 15-day injured list
 * Not on active roster
 † Suspended list
 Roster, coaches, and NRIs updated January 10, 2024
 Transactions • Depth chart
 → All MLB rosters


Major League Baseball draft

The 2024 Major League Baseball (MLB) First-Year Player Draft will be held in Arlington, Texas on Sunday, July 14, and will end on Tuesday, July 16, after the 2024 MLB Draft Lottery took place on December 5, 2023, in Nashville, Tennessee during the Winter Meetings. The draft assigns amateur baseball players to MLB teams.

The Cardinals in the second annual draft lottery for the 2024 Major League Baseball draft, will get the #7 draft pick that initially projected them with the #5 pick. The Minnesota Twins will have a pick (#33) immediately following the Prospect Promotion Incentive (PPI) picks as compensation for losing Sonny Gray, who signed with the Cardinals after rejecting his qualifying offer from Minnesota. The Cardinals will lose their second-highest draft pick in exchange for signing Gray. The Draft will remain at 20 rounds, and after the first round, the non-postseason teams will choose in reverse order of winning percentage. In all 20 rounds, the playoff clubs will choose in reverse order of their postseason finish (Wild Card losers, Division Series losers, Championship Series losers, World Series loser, World Series winner). Within each of those playoff groups, teams are sorted by revenue-sharing status and then reverse order of winning percentage.[20] Draft experts pick the first 10 who they believe will be signed in July 2024 in Arlington, Texas.[21]

2024 Draft Order

2024 Draft Tracker (STL Cardinals)
Cardinals Draft Signings Tracker

References

  1. ↑ "Adam Wainwright Stats, Height, Weight, Position, Rookie Status & More". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved November 22, 2023.
  2. ↑ "Cardinals 1-0 Brewers (Sep 18, 2023) Final Score". ESPN. Retrieved November 22, 2023.
  3. ↑ "Cardinals hire '11 champ Descalso as bench coach". MLB.com. November 20, 2023.
  4. ↑ "Cardinals Hope To Add Three Starters In Offseason". MLB Trade Rumors. August 15, 2023. Retrieved November 27, 2023.
  5. ↑ "2023 MLB Team Pitching Stat Leaders". MLB.com. Retrieved November 27, 2023.
  6. ↑ "Lynn returning to Cardinals on 1-year deal". MLB.com. November 21, 2023.
  7. ↑ "Cardinals keep adding pitching, sign veteran Gibson". MLB.com. November 21, 2023.
  8. ↑ "Cardinals sign P Kyle Gibson to 1-year, $12M deal, sources say". ESPN. November 21, 2023.
  9. ↑ "Cardinals, Sonny Gray reportedly agree to 3-year, $75 million contract". Yahoo Sports. November 27, 2023.
  10. ↑ Schaeffer, Brenden (November 27, 2023). "Cardinals make Sonny Gray signing official at press conference". KMOV.com.
  11. ↑ "Yadier Molina is not joining Cardinals' coaching staff in a full-time role for 2024". redbirdrants.com. November 30, 2023.
  12. ↑ "Guardians win Draft Lottery, securing next year's draft pick". MLB. December 5, 2023.
  13. ↑ "2023 Rule 5 draft: Complete results, analysis". MLB. December 6, 2023.
  14. ↑ "Ryan Fernandez". MLB. Retrieved December 6, 2023.
  15. ↑ "Yadi named special assistant to Mozeliak". MLB. December 6, 2023.
  16. ↑ "Cardinals acquire pitchers Robertson, Santos from Red Sox for O'Neill". MLB. December 8, 2023.
  17. ↑ "Cardinals finalize manager Oliver Marmol's coaching staff with two new additions". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. December 11, 2023.
  18. ↑ "Cards add bullpen depth by acquiring Kittredge from Rays". MLB. January 5, 2024.
  19. ↑ "Cardinals hire Chaim Bloom as advisor to Mozeliak". MLB. January 8, 2024.
  20. ↑ "Guardians win Draft Lottery, securing next year's draft pick". MLB. December 5, 2023.
  21. ↑ "Draft experts make the first 10 picks of 2024". MLB. December 5, 2023.
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