St. Louis Cardinals: Creating a 2021 All Ex-Cardinals Team

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May 23, 2021; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Milwaukee Brewers second baseman Kolten Wong (16) bats against the Cincinnati Reds during the eighth inning at Great American Ball Park. Mandatory Credit: David Kohl-USA TODAY Sports /

The St. Louis Cardinals have all-around one of the best squads in the National League, but there are plenty of other good ex-Cardinals out there.

Looking at a roster of former St. Louis Cardinals players, it will include players who played for the Cardinals and for Cardinals’ affiliates. These are a group of players that are enjoying much success outside of St. Louis and some even having their best seasons to date.

While it may be painful to read this as some of them were given away for basically nothing, while others were traded for key pieces to help the current St. Louis Cardinals enjoy the success we have been having this year.

Now, let’s take a look at what former Cardinals could be featured in a 2021 All Ex-Cardinals Team.

Infielders

Catcher: Carson Kelly

Carson Kelly has enjoyed a breakout season thus far with the Arizona Diamondbacks and has really come into his own as one of the best hitting catchers in all of baseball. Kelly ranks 2nd amongst all catchers in 2021 (min 100 PA) in total offensive production with a 150 wRC+.

Carson Kelly has been a complete threat at the plate and has shown he is also no slouch defensively either. The converted third baseman has put of 2 DRS and that puts him tied for 10th at the catcher position.

While yes, Cardinals’ fans love the future Hall of Famer Yadier Molina and we would not trade him for anything due to what he brings to the clubhouse and the immeasurable assets to the pitching staff, Kelly has actually been a more productive player thus far.

Reason for departure: Traded to Arizona for Paul Goldschmidt

Carson Kelly 2021: .287/.426/.491, 150 wRC+, +2 DRS

First Base: Luke Voit

St. Louis native Luke Voit was a fan favorite when brought up through the Cardinals system as everyone knew that a homegrown, hometown, home-run hitter was coming up to provide a spark in the big leagues.

Luke Voit never really came into his own as an elite hitter until he was shipped off to the Bronx and has since been one of the best hitters in all of baseball. In the pandemic-shortened season of 2020, Voit took home the home-run crown with 22 long-balls. Of all the deals the Cardinals made to rid of the players on the list, this has to be one of the most win-win trades in recent memory for the hometown team.

Voit has been dealing with an oblique injury that has kept him out most of the 2021 campaign, but he is sure to be a force for that lineup and is a great candidate to protect Judge and Stanton in that Yankees lineup.

Reason for departure: Traded to New York (AL) for Giovanny Gallegos

Luke Voit 2021: .182/.280/.250, 58 wRC+, (50 PA)

Second Base: Kolten Wong

This man is sorely missed in the organization and played a part of so many great Cardinals teams. Wong endured many ups and downs as a big leaguer and always left everything he had on the field. Now with the Milwaukee Brewers, Wong is enjoying his best offensive season to date. With a wRC+ of 115 so far this year, that surpasses his previous career-high of 108 in 2019. It sure stings a bit knowing that he is doing this for a division rival, but we all wish him the best.

Reason for departure: Signed with Milwaukee for 2 years/18 million

Kolten Wong 2021: .280/.343/.441, 115 wRC+, +6 DRS

Third Base: Patrick Wisdom

Wisdom has really come into his own with the Chicago Cubs this year. With only 25 plate appearances so far, Wisdom has made quite the impression amongst the Cubbie fans. He has hit 4 homers so far while manning the hot corner and playing a little bit of right field.

The Cardinals may take the upper hand here due to us having one of the best third basemen in the league, but still Wisdom has proven that he is no slouch at the plate and has proven to be an unlikely spark for Chicago so far this year.

Reason for departure: Traded to the Texas Rangers for Drew Robinson

Patrick Wisdom 2021: .417/.440/.958, 274 wRC+, (25 PA)

Shortstop: Aledmys Diaz/Brad Miller Platoon

Aledmys Diaz is an interesting player nowadays, he has taken on the role of being the super-utility guy for the high-powered offense of the Houston Astros and has seemingly done very well in this role. He has logged at least 22 innings at all four infield positions and has even spent quite a bit of time in left field and has even manned right field so far this season.

Reason for departure: Traded to Toronto for J.B. Woodman

For when there is a righty on the mound, Brad Miller has also taken on a very similar role with the Philadelphia Phillies. It seems with Miller and Diaz that wherever you have a hole in the field, these guys step up and will take on any position that they are asked to play. While he hasn’t played shortstop yet this season, we all know that he is capable of manning the position as he has logged over 3,000 innings at shortstop over his career.

Reason for Departure: Signed with Philadelphia for 1 year/3.5 million

Aledmys Diaz 2021: .269/.331/.407, 109 wRC+

Brad Miller 2021: .282/.342/.264, 120 wRC+

May 18, 2021; Dunedin, Florida, CAN; Toronto Blue Jays center fielder Randal Grichuk (15) hits a two-run home run during the eighth inning against the Boston Red Sox during the eighth inning at TD Ballpark. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /

Outfielders

Left Field: Randy Arozarena

Yes, I know, this one stings. Randy Arozarena has turned into one of the most premier threats in all of baseball and is probably the most loved man in all of Tampa right now because without him, they would not have reached the World Series last year.

Arozarena broke onto the scene with the Cardinals in the 2019 campaign and in limited chances, did very well. He never seemed to get any real chance for continuous playing time, but when he did play he was quite successful.

After being shipped to Tampa, Arozarena quickly turned some heads and was subsequently thrown into the heart of the lineup for the playoff stretch and into the postseason. While nobody likely could have predicted that Randy Arozarena would turn out to be this much of a superstar, it still stings all the same.

Reason for departure: Traded to Tampa for Matthew Liberatore

Randy Arozarena 2021: .254/.343/.397, 115 wRC+

Center Field: Adolis Garcia

One of the biggest surprises of the 2021 season so far has been Adolis Garcia. Not even in the talks to be one of the candidates for rookie of the year and not even two months in and he seems to be the front runner for the award.

Like Arozarena, Adolis Garcia only played sparingly for the Cardinals and did not make quite the impression that Arozarena did. But he has really broken out for the Texas Rangers this year and is really enjoying himself in their brand-new ballpark. To make matters even worse is what he was traded to Texas for.

Reason for departure: Traded to Texas for CASH CONSIDERATIONS

Adolis Garcia 2021: .283/.318/.567, 144 wRC+

Right Field: Randal Grichuk

Had a hard time deciding my final outfielder here. My choices came down to Tommy Pham, David Peralta, and Randal Grichuk. While Peralta never played in the majors for the Cardinals and was actually a left-handed pitcher in the organization, I decided to use him off the bench. Tommy Pham was a close second, but I had to give the honors to Randal Grichuk because he has really turned his career around for the better this year and has been on an absolute tear.

A tweet from High Heat Stats (@highheatstats) shows that in his last 162 games played, Grichuk has 38 homers, 112 RBIs, and 95 runs scored. It is no denying that Grichuk has been a force in that lineup and has really taken advantage of the playing time he has been getting due to the injury of George Springer.

Reason for departure: Traded to Toronto for Dominic Leone

Randal Grichuk 2021: .286/.318/.515, 128 wRC+

May 7, 2021; New York City, New York, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks starting pitcher Zac Gallen (23) pitches against the New York Mets during the first inning at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports /

Starting Rotation

No. 1 Starter: Lance Lynn

Since he left St. Louis in free agency, Lance Lynn has become one of the most reliable and consistent pitchers in all of baseball. Lynn who has always been a fastball-heavy pitcher has widely increased his strikeout percentage since leaving the Cardinals.

His last year with the Cardinals was 2017 where he sported a K/9 of 7.39 and since leaving the Cardinals it has never been under 9.25, with his best strikeout year coming in 2019 with a K/9 of 10.63 where he was 7th in the entire league in total strikeouts. Having Lance Lynn at the head of your rotation is a great place to start.

Reason for departure: Signed with the Minnesota Twins for 1 year/12 million.

Lance Lynn 2021: 58.2 IP, 1.38 ERA

No. 2 Starter: Zac Gallen

This is one of the guys, along with Adolis Garcia, that just stings a little bit as he was not the centerpiece of his trade and most said it was just a “throw-in.” Looking now as if Zac Gallen was the most key part of the trade. Zac Gallen never did play a game in a St. Louis Cardinals uniform but was always just a solid starter for the Cardinals in their minor league system.

Gallen only made it to AAA Memphis while with the Cardinals before being shipped to Miami and eventually traded again to Arizona. Gallen was one of the biggest breakout pitchers in all of baseball when he broke into the league in 2019 and sported an above-average K/9 while managing to keep his ERA under 3.

Gallen is currently recovering from an elbow injury but should be back in no time. Gallen would provide any team as an extremely solid number 2 starter.

Reason for departure: Traded to Miami for Marcell Ozuna

Zac Gallen 2021: 26.2 IP, 3.04 ERA

No. 3 Starter: Sandy Alcantara

Alcantara was one of the ones also in the same Marcell Ozuna trade but unlike Gallen, Sandy did happen to break onto the scene in the big leagues for the Cardinals. He never started a game but did provide for us as a decent reliever for St. Louis over 8.1 IP.

Since becoming a Miami Marlin, Alcantara has really impressed a lot of people in the organization and since becoming a full-time starter in 2019, he has never sported an ERA over 3.88. Alcantara has run into a bit of bad luck this year as he currently has a 3.68 ERA but has an expected ERA (xERA) of 2.92.

Reason for departure: Traded to Miami for Marcell Ozuna

Sandy Alcantara 2021: 71 IP, 3.68 ERA

No. 4 Starter: Marco Gonzales

It seems like forever ago that Marco Gonzales played in a Cardinals uniform as he last played for the Cardinals in 2017 after recovering from Tommy John surgery. Gonzales debuted for the Cardinals in 2014. He actually spent some time on the MLB.com Top 100 prospects list as well.

Gonzales never really found his form with the Cardinals and was eventually shipped to Seattle where he has turned into a really quality left-handed starting pitcher. Gonzales put out his best season last year in the shortened season as he pitched to a 3.10 ERA over 70 IP.

Reason for departure: Traded to Seattle for Tyler O’Neill

Marco Gonzales 2021: 32.1 IP, 5.01 ERA

No. 5 Starter: Austin Gomber

There is nobody I feel worse for on this list than Austin Gomber. He was always a really reliable guy and would take on any situation that was thrown his way. He succeeded as a reliever and a starter and just always seemed to be sent back and forth between St. Louis and Memphis.

Gomber has a really good breaking ball and always seems to keep his teams in the game. How do the Cardinals repay him for all his hard work? By sending him to pitch a mile up in the air for the Colorado Rockies. While I would think that not a single pitcher would want to pitch in those conditions, Gomber has held his own. He holds an xERA of 3.52 and is second on the team in IP.

Reason for departure: Traded to Colorado for Nolan Arenado (and 50 MILLION DOLLARS)

Recap (Lineup and Rotation)

Manager: Tony LaRussa

Lineup

Kolten Wong
Randy Arozarena
Adolis Garcia
Randal Grichuk
Luke Voit
Carson Kelly
Aledmys Diaz/Brad Miller
Patrick Wisdom
Pitcher

Bench

Albert Pujols

David Peralta

Tommy Pham

Matt Adams

Yairo Munoz

Rotation

Lance Lynn
Zac Gallen
Sandy Alcantara
Marco Gonzales
Austin Gomber

Bullpen

Trevor Rosenthal

Joe Kelly

Mike Mayers

Adam Ottavino

Greg Holland

Two forgotten names to consider for St. Louis Cardinals HOF in 2022. dark. Next

So there it is. Some of these names hurt more than others, some were worth it, some were not worth it. In the end, it turns out you can make a pretty good team out of former Cardinals.

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