St. Louis Cardinals: Cardinals Opt Against Qualifying Offer for Brandon Moss

The news started dribbling out on Thursday that the St. Louis Cardinals will not present a qualifying offer to Brandon Moss.

The St. Louis Cardinals spent 2016 trying to decide how to get the most out of Brandon Moss.  Moss had some bright moments but also found himself mired in mediocrity like another lefty on the team with power promise, Matt Adams.  The Cardinals loved the reclamation idea of Moss but did it pan out?

Brandon Moss joined the St. Louis Cardinals during the 2015 season from the Cleveland Indians.  Yes, those Cleveland Indians who just lost in the World Series.  Those Cleveland Indians who sent Moss away in 2015 to play in the big series in 2016.  Coincidence?

Moss started his career with the Red Sox who drafted him in the eighth round of the 2002 draft.  He made his MLB debut in 2007 for the Sox.  Six years later after being drafted he was traded as part of a three-team deal.  In this deal, Moss went to the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2008.

Two years later he entered his first free agency.  That year- 2010- he was signed to a one-year deal by the Phillies.  After that single year, Moss entered his second stint of free agency and was snagged by the Oakland Athletics.  In 2014 with Oakland, Moss commanded his game and found himself playing in the All-Star game.  Here’s a look at that impressive year:

These numbers helped him find a new home through trade.  His value witnessed in 2014 coupled with his All-Star status, helped the Athletics trade him player-for-player for Joey Wendle, a then-24-year-old second baseman.  Wendle went straight to AAA and made his MLB debut in August of 2016.  Read anything here?

Back to the St. Louis Cardinals… The Cardinals grabbed Moss in 2015 when the team needed a player of his abilities to man the outfield spots as needed and to man first base as well.  The thought was that Moss could well spell some relief for Adams at first who was experiencing struggles.  It would have worked if Moss too didn’t experience similar frustrations.

2015 was to be a rebound year for Moss who had offseason hip surgery between the 2014 and 2015 season.  Mozeliak loves a good reclamation case and Moss was to be yet another.  The plan was to get Moss to St. Louis, ease him back into regular play, and then flourish with his power bat.  So how did he do in St. Louis?

Fans will remember the flashes of power but fans will also remember the too-much-like-Adams player that Moss became.  2016 was a great year for the home run from Moss and fans- myself included- wondered if a qualifying offer was in the works.  That was until the news of this year’s QO figure was released: $17.2M.

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Is $17.2M too much for Moss?  The St. Louis Cardinals certainly believe it is.  This is likely due to his cooling-off at the end of the season.  The power alone was simply not enough to warrant the QO.  Not especially since Moss is 33 years old and not especially since his almost-doppelganger Adams is only 28 and under team control until 2019.

A quick note: no QO does not mean no contract.  I mention this to say that the Cardinals and Moss could negotiate a contract if the two parties would like to remain together.  Denying the QO simply means that the Cardinals aren’t willing to pay $17.2M.  Will they stay together or will the team focus on a figure for Adams to avoid arbitration?

Next: Garcia Option a Mistake

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