St. Louis Cardinals: Ranking the players with the most value beyond 2021

PITTSBURGH, PA - SEPTEMBER 20: Yadier Molina #4 of the St. Louis Cardinals celebrates with Dylan Carlson #3 after hitting a two run home run in the seventh inning during the game against the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park on September 20, 2020 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images)
PITTSBURGH, PA - SEPTEMBER 20: Yadier Molina #4 of the St. Louis Cardinals celebrates with Dylan Carlson #3 after hitting a two run home run in the seventh inning during the game against the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park on September 20, 2020 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images) /
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St. Louis Cardinals
DENVER, CO – SEPTEMBER 12: Giovanny Gallegos #65 of the St. Louis Cardinals pitches during the game against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field on September 12, 2019 in Denver, Colorado. The Cardinals defeated the Rockies 10-3. (Photo by Rob Leiter/MLB Photos via Getty Images) /

THREE LOOSELY RELATED RELIEF PITCHERS:

In all honesty, I have no idea how to evaluate these three. Because they are all relievers and have established themselves at the major league level, I grouped them together. Otherwise, they’re very different.

25-John Gant (arb 2022, FA 2023)

John Gant might be in the most perplexing situation on the St. Louis Cardinals’ roster. He’s been very valuable out of the bullpen, yet every year there are rumors that he should be in the rotation. He’s arbitration-eligible for one more season, but he’s already 28 years old. I’m not sure the best role for him, or if he’ll be around after 2021. For now, however, he is a consistent reliever– every team is happy to have one of those.

24-Tyler Webb

Speaking of unusual, here comes Tyler Webb. Maybe the most beloved player of the Redbird Rants staff, the lefty should not be good according to many advanced metrics on how good his stuff is. Against those odds, he’s been effective for two full years now as a Cardinal. A slightly above average left-handed reliever only has so high of a ceiling, so despite being under team control for the next few years, he slots in here on this list.

23-Giovanny Gallegos

I really wanted to rank Giovanny Gallegos higher on this list, but I just couldn’t figure out how. Gallegos has been one of the top relievers out of the St. Louis bullpen for two seasons now. There’s just a sense that he’s reached his ceiling. If Gallegos can keep producing at a high level as a late-inning reliever and sometimes closer, then he will be a very important piece of many Cardinal teams in the future. For now, he stays at 23, behind some players with bigger roles or more potential.