5 pitchers the St. Louis Cardinals could target this offseason

Mike Maddux of the St. Louis Cardinals looks on from the top step of dugout during the game against the Milwaukee Brewers at American Family Field on September 05, 2021 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Brewers defeated the Cardinals 6-5. (Photo by John Fisher/Getty Images)
Mike Maddux of the St. Louis Cardinals looks on from the top step of dugout during the game against the Milwaukee Brewers at American Family Field on September 05, 2021 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Brewers defeated the Cardinals 6-5. (Photo by John Fisher/Getty Images) /
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TORONTO, ON – SEPTEMBER 17: Michael Pineda #35 of the Minnesota Twins pitches in the first inning of their MLB game against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre on September 17, 2021 in Toronto, Ontario. (Photo by Cole Burston/Getty Images)
TORONTO, ON – SEPTEMBER 17: Michael Pineda #35 of the Minnesota Twins pitches in the first inning of their MLB game against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre on September 17, 2021 in Toronto, Ontario. (Photo by Cole Burston/Getty Images) /

Michael Pineda

At 32, Michael Pineda would be an interesting middle innings arm for the Cardinals.

In 22 games, Pineda was 9-8 in 2021 with 109.1 innings thrown. He struck out 88 batters and walked 21. He had a 77.7 percentage rate for leaving runners on base. Not bad! He had a swinging strike rate of 27.9%. While it looks very below average, he only walked 21 batters in 109 innings, which is awe-inspiring when you’re a Cardinals fan!

Pineda relies on a four-seam fastball, a slider, and a change-up. Pineda’s fastball averages out at 90.6 mph with 19 inches of vertical drop and an active spin of 88%. The slider averages 81.2 mph with 29.3 inches of drop and active spin at 12%. That’s pretty filthy! Pineda’s changeup averages 85.5 mph with 29.3 inches of drop and an active spin of 94%. Pineda’s chase rate ranks the 96th percentile of MLB pitchers in 2021.

While he will be 33 next season, he would definitely be an interesting option to fill out the pitching staff. It does seem like a long shot but so does losing a majority of your pitching staff to injury in the period of a few weeks. He could also be good for younger members of the pitching staff to get tips and pointers.