St. Louis Cardinals: The Bargain Basement

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Sep 3, 2015; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Chicago White Sox catcher Geovany Soto (58) in the first inning against the Minnesota Twins at Target Field. Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports

This is the off season of big name free agents. Zach Grienke, David Price, Jason Heyward, and Chris Davis are just of few of the high end options on the market, and they all rank in the top twenty players from this past season and the past three years. It’s a lot of fun to speculate about the St. Louis Cardinals pursuing any or all of these free agents, but today we’re going to try something different. Let’s leave the hypothetical Neiman Marcus behind and head to the thrift shop. We’re hunting for bargains — used, but still useful, pieces that could be added to the roster for next to nothing. Let’s see what we can find.

We need to start by identifying the Cardinals’ biggest needs. We’d like a starting pitcher, a first baseman (or at least the right handed half of a platoon there), a backup catcher, and a utility infielder with a better bat than Pete Kozma. Time to start hunting.

Next: Mark Buehrle

Oct 4, 2015; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; Toronto Blue Jays starting pitcher Mark Buehrle (56) throws a pitch during the first inning against the Tampa Bay Rays during the first inning at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Mark Buehrle

In a lot of ways, a starting pitcher will be the most challenging thing to find. In order to stay starters, they have to be good pitchers, and if they’re good pitchers, they tend to get paid like good pitchers. Mark Buehrle may be an exception. To begin with, we aren’t sure that he is a good pitcher at this point. Beyond that, he has apparently stated that he’ll either retire or pitch for the St. Louis Cardinals. If he wants to pitch for St. Louis, that’s not a great position to start negotiating from (“If you don’t give me $10 million, I might retire!”), so maybe he’ll be interested in coming aboard for less than he might otherwise get for the opportunity to go out wearing the birds on the bat.

As for why we’d want him, the answer is pretty simple: 200 innings. Since first becoming a full time starter in 2001, Mark Buehrle has thrown at least 200 innings in every season except 2015. He fell 1.1 innings from his fifteenth straight season at that mark. He’s also been worth an average of about 3.4 fWAR per season. Given that we’re relying on full, healthy seasons from Adam Wainwright, Jaime Garcia, Carlos Martinez, and Michael Wacha, doesn’t 200 innings of league average sound like a nice little bit of stability? Yeah, I think so too.

Projected Cost: $2M-$5M/1 year + incentives to $10M

Next: Cliff Lee

Apr 26, 2014; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Philadelphia Phillies starting pitcher Cliff Lee (33) pitches in the third inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports

Cliff Lee

But what if we don’t want stability? What if we want an ace, but don’t want to pay for an ace? Well, how about Cliff Lee? Between 2008 and 2013, Lee averaged about 6.2 fWAR, which is definitely ace territory. He was pitching well in 2014 before he injured a tendon in his left arm and went down indefinitely. So, can he pitch? Who knows! Does he still want to pitch? Who knows! It’s really hard to guess, and at 37, Cliff Lee may choose to walk away from the game. But if he doesn’t and instead decides to try to start again, would you take a flyer on him? I think it would be hard to pass up.

Projected Cost: Minor League Contract w/ Spring Training invite-$5M/1 year + incentives to $10M

Next: Aubrey Huff

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Aubrey Huff

Alright, let’s move on to first base. Do you remember the name Aubrey Huff? If not, don’t feel bad: he hasn’t played since 2012 and officially retired in 2014. Which makes this off season the ideal time to announce a comeback. The 38 year old first baseman was pretty good for a while with the Giants, and although he’s a lefty, he could definitely be worth looking into. I’d think he’d be in line for something similar to, but perhaps a little less than, what Grady Sizemore got for his comeback in 2014.

Projected Cost: League minimum/1 year + incentives to $5M

Apr 13, 2015; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates pinch hitter Corey Hart (12) hits a two run home run against the Detroit Tigers during the seventh inning at PNC Park. The Pirates won 5-4. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

Corey Hart

Do you remember when Corey Hart was good? Not anymore. He’s been constantly injured and has been pretty awful when he has limped onto the field. He also can play first base and bats right handed. Maybe he can get healthy and bring some of his former pop to our bench. Sounds like a pretty good bargain option to me! He’s coming off of a 1 year/$2.5 million contract with the Pirates and will probably have to take less after yet another injury plagued season.

Projected Cost: Minor League contract w/ Spring Training invite-$1M/1 year + incentives to $5M

Next: Geovany Soto

Sep 23, 2015; Detroit, MI, USA; Chicago White Sox catcher Geovany Soto (58) slams his bat to the ground after striking out in the seventh inning against the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports

Geovany Soto

For backup catcher, all we need to find is something better than Tony Cruz‘s mediocre defense and awful offense (career 56 wRC+, which is 44% below league average). Geovany Soto is actually a hair above average in his career offensively (103 wRC+), and has slightly better defense than Cruz. He’s not a powerhouse, but he does have a little bit of pop and will definitely offer an upgrade over Cruz. The former Rookie of the Year isn’t a superstar anymore, but he would be an improvement to the bench and would give Matheny a more palatable option for Molina’s days off.

Projected Cost: $2M-$4M/1 year

Sep 2, 2015; San Diego, CA, USA; San Diego Padres shortstop Clint Barmes (12) hits a two RBI double during the fourth inning against the Texas Rangers at Petco Park. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports

St. Louis Cardinals Hot Stove: The bargain basement of free agents