Projected arbitration salaries for 8 St. Louis Cardinals players

Here are the projected arbitration salaries for eight St. Louis Cardinals players, including Tyler O’Neill and Jack Flaherty.

With the St. Louis Cardinals’ season over, it’s time to turn the page to the offseason.

For the next few months, many players via free agency or trade will be connected to the Cardinals. For now, however, let’s focus on their own players — specifically the ones who are arbitration eligible. In their annual arbitration salary projections, MLB Trade Rumors listed these numbers for the following players:

Alex Reyes, reliever: $3.3 million.

Harrison Bader, outfielder: $3.7 million.

Justin Miller, pitcher: $900,000.

Jack Flaherty, starting pitcher: $5.1 million.

Giovanny Gallegos, reliever: $2.8 million.

Dakota Hudson, pitcher: $1.7 million.

Tyler O’Neill, outfielder: $3.5 million.

There are two players who specifically standout. First, is Flaherty. The Cardinals and their right-handed ace went to an arbitration hearing, with Flaherty coming out on top, and it left bad blood between the two sides. President of baseball operations John Mozeliak would likely prefer getting a deal done to avoid going to another hearing or, to ensure keeping Flaherty in St. Louis long-term, signing him to a long-term extension. Let’s just say this: Don’t get your hopes up.

The other is O’Neill. Having O’Neill, a player who should get top-10 votes in the MVP race, for only $3.5 million in 2022 would be an absolute steal for the Cardinals and could open up opportunities to add a big salary to the lineup along the lines of, say, Trevor Story. Even if O’Neill signs for more than $3.5 million — he wouldn’t get much more — that is still a bargain compared to what he would land on the open market.

Regarding the other players, Justin Miller is a non-tender candidate, according to the Belleville News-Democrat. The Bader decision should be easy considering his breakout season at the plate and elite center field defense. The others are basically shoeins, making the arbitration salaries for the Cardinals an easy bridge to cross unlike others (see: Flaherty last winter).