St. Louis Cardinals: 3 soon-to-be free agent outfielders to keep an eye on

It’s not too early for the St Louis Cardinals to start looking at a few free-agent outfielders who will be available either at the trade deadline or during the upcoming offseason.

I know, I know. It’s early. In fact, you may say, it’s too early to start talking trade deadline and the offseason. After all, as I’m writing this, the Cardinals have only played 21 games. So let’s not push the panic button.

But from what we’ve seen from this team so far, it’s not too early to start looking at a few free-agent options that could be available at the trade deadline or in the offseason. The 2021 version of the St. Louis Cardinals have struggled to get starters past five innings, and consistently produce runs.

These two issues could work themselves out in the next few weeks. Kwang Hyun Kim is back, and the rotation has been going deeper into games in the last week. Additionally, no one expects Paul Goldschmidt to continue to SLG .354 or have an OPS of .640 very much longer.

However, it’s the outfield that concerns me the most at this early stage, and why I want to look at free-agent possibilities.

The St Louis Cardinals’ current outfield dilemma

First, let’s look at the current outfield situation, which to put it optimistically, is still evolving. Harrison Bader has yet to return from the IL, and Tyler O’Neill recently returned from the 10-day IL after hitting a slash line of just.143/.172/.286 during his first 8 games. Justin Williams has a .189/.295/.302 line thus far, and struck out three times in Friday’s game vs the Reds. Austin Dean in his last seven games has a slash line of .111/.308/.222 and struck out 4 times in his last nine at-bats.

Lane Thomas was brought up originally from the Alternate Site to replace O’Neill and was returned after he seemed lost trying to play center field. Thomas’ replacement is Scott Hurst who has never advanced past AA. Also, let’s not forget, the Cardinals are having to play their best second baseman in right field.

Nevertheless, the news from the outfield is not all negative. Dylan Carlson is second on the team at the time of writing in OPS (.966), OPS+ (159), and RBIs (12). Additionally, Carlson in his last seven games, has a slash line of .375/.464/583.

Now let’s look at three soon-to-be free agent outfielders.

Why the St Louis Cardinals should keep an eye on Michael Conforto

Michael Conforto is a 28-year old corner outfielder with the New York Mets. The left-handed bat has a career slash line of .258/.358/.480 with an OPS+ of 127.

Since 2017, Conforto has shown himself to be a consistent middle-of-the-order bat, just what the Cardinals need to complement Nolan Arenado and Paul Goldschmidt. Conforto hit 27 homers with 68 RBI in 2017 in just 109 games, 28 homers with 82 RBI in 132 games in 2018, and 33 homers with 93 RBI in 141 games during 2019.

The former first-round pick is on a one-year $12.25 million contract in 2021. The question becomes will the Mets be willing to move him at the trade deadline or even let him walk after the season?

I exchanged the idea of Michael Conforto being a trade deadline target or an offseason target for the Cardinals with Ben Cerutti of Birds on the Black. Ben told me he likes Conforto, along with another Mets outfielder, Brandon Nimmo. Still, he doesn’t think the Mets will move Conforto at the trade deadline, especially if they are still in the playoff chase. But he added, “as a free agent it makes a lot of sense.”

Why the St Louis Cardinals should keep an eye on Nick Castellanos

If you missed the brawl with the Reds during the first series of the season, and you don’t know who Nick Castellanos is, then let me give you a little background info. He is a 29-year-old right-handed bat with a career slash line of .274/.324/.476 and an OPS+ of 113.

Castellanos has played extensively at both third base and right field. The Cardinals don’t need a third baseman, but he could come in handy in right field, although not for his defensive prowess. This former first-rounder is another possible piece that could fit nicely in a Cardinal lineup with Arenando and Goldschmidt. From 2017 to 2019, he hit respectively, 26, 23, and 27 homers, along with 101, 89, and 73 RBI.

Not only can Castellanos hit for power, he also maintains OPS’s since 2016 of .827, .811, .854, .863, and .784 respectfully. Additionally, since 2016, his OPS+ has been as high as 154, but never lower than 112 before 2020.

I reached out to Redbird Rants site co-expert, Matt Graves, to get his opinion on Castellanos. Matt said, “Castellanos is definitely another middle-of-the-order bat that could help. At 29 this year he seems much older, but in a vacuum would be a perfect pickup.” Matt also added, “The problem is only whether or not, the dust-up earlier this season would make him, or the fans not want to come here.”

Castellanos signed a four-year $64 million contract in 2020 with the Reds. However, he has an opt-out clause at the end of the season, which would make him available for potential suitors. A trade deadline deal would only seem possible if the Reds believe Castellanos would choose to exercise his opt-out option.

To wrap up…

The St. Louis Cardinals are using 2021 to find out what they have with their young outfield. It’s still too early to make a judgment on any of these players. However, by the trade deadline, and certainly by the season’s end, the front office will have a better grip on what these guys can or can’t do.

If there are still weaknesses with the Cardinal offense at the end of the year, the improvement will likely be made in the outfield. This is where players like Michael Conforto, Eddie Rosario, and Nick Castellanos could come in.

I suspect Rosario could be available by the July 31st trade deadline. As far as Conforto is concerned, I agree with Ben Cerutti, probably not an option until the offseason. Castellanos depends on how the Reds are doing, and if they think they can retain him after the season.

None of these players are the type to carry a team alone to a championship, but all three would be nice pieces to add in the lineup to complement Paul Goldschmidt and Nolan Arenado.  In other words, they could be the finishes touches to push the Cardinals into a deep playoff run.