NEWSLETTER
It probably seems like you’ve heard this already this offseason because it’s so dang obvious, but technically it’s only now a thing.
The Cardinals are in on free agent lefty Madison Bumgarner:
Cardinals "a new potential bidder" for Madison Bumgarner, per @Feinsand: https://t.co/PBQpa1SgMH
— Drew Silva (@drewsilv) December 5, 2019
Top-tier redass in a red uniform in St. Louis. It’s too perfect.
The Cardinals have been among the many teams to cry poverty already this offseason, so it’s possible Bumgarner will be out of their price range, especially if he approaches the $100 million suggested by Zack Wheeler’s deal. But given the competitive state of the Cardinals’ roster and the fact that they’ve only got so many more useful/top years out of guys like Yadi Molina, Paul Goldschmidt, Matt Carpenter, Miles Mikolas, Carlos Martinez, etc., it’s hard for me to see them actually sitting out a really deep pitching class.
Plus, everything about Bumgarner screams Cardinals. Always has.
Performance-wise, Bumgarner has obviously had to deal with the effects of aging and velocity decline, but he was very solid in 2019 – even if not his formerly dominant self:
At age 30, with the velocity continuing to slip and a heavy reliance on command and weak contact, is he a guy you’d commit $100 million to? I’m not so sure. But he does figure to still be a perfectly solid middle-of-the-rotation arm for at least another couple years, and that might be critical for the Cardinals as they look to maximize their performance while they’ve got all these pieces in place.
For now, the Cardinals rotation is fronted by Jack Flaherty and Mikolas, with Dakota Hudson and Adam Wainwright in the middle, and guys like Daniel Ponce De Leon and Genesis Cabrera taking a shot at the back of the rotation, assuming Martinez stays in the bullpen.
Stay tuned on this front, because the rumors around the game have Bumgarner signing as soon as the next few days.
