5 burning questions the St. Louis Cardinals are nowhere close to answering

2. When will the young arms be called up to take over the pitching staff?

Before the Red Sox series, I wrote how the Cardinals starting pitching was doing their job to keep the team in games, but that was before Erick Fedde allowed six runs in three innings and Miles Mikolas matched that performance with a blowup in the nightcap in the doubleheader against the Red Sox. Three of the five current starters in the St. Louis rotation have expiring contracts, with Sonny Gray and Mikolas also holding no-trade clauses in their deals. If they cannot perform to at least league-average standards, interest around the league may be lukewarm at best and the Cardinals would hate to eat salary in a DFA scenario.

Matthew Liberatore and Andre Pallante are the only starters in the rotation under the age of 32 and also the only two under contract beyond the 2025 season. Both pitchers are expected to have long leashes this year in their starting role, with Liberatore finally getting an extended look after winning the fifth starter job in spring. Pallante was the bright spot in an underwhelming rotation last year and hopes to build off of that success as he enters his arbitration years. Beyond an injury or miserable performance, each of the two should expect to be in St. Louis next year and could be the "veteran" arms in a rotation that may have three open spots next year.

The organization appears to have major-league-ready talent in Quinn Mathews and Michael McGreevy waiting at Memphis. Mathews, the 2024 Minor League Pitcher of the Year, impressed in his short spring in big league camp but was never really expected to crack the rotation out of camp and will finish his development in Triple-A. McGreevy appeared to be in the running for a role as the sixth starter in St. Louis, but the team opted to keep a traditional five-man rotation with veteran Steven Matz moving to the bullpen, relegating McGreevy to the minors.

Other top pitching prospects Tink Hence (#3) and Cooper Hjerpe (#6) were thought to be candidates to make debuts in St. Louis in the near future, but each is sitting on the minor league injured list without much clarity on their rehab process. It would be unrealistic to think that the oldest arm in the rotation next year would be Pallante at 27 years old, so Bloom will be tasked with finding an established veteran to lead the staff, either as an ace or as a clubhouse leader. That free-agent target may depend on how this year's team performs. They probably will shy away from offering a big contract to an established ace and look in the depths of the free agent market that could be low-risk and a potential trade chip at the deadline.

Erick Fedde and Steven Matz could be out of St. Louis before the offseason if they perform at a decent level and up their trade value. Either of these two could open up a rotation spot where Mathews, McGreevy, or 27th man in the doubleheader. Gordon Graceffo could slide in and get an early audition for the 2026 campaign. In his one-game call-up, Graceffo was forced into action with two outs in the third inning thanks to Mikolas' short start. After allowing a homer to Alex Bregman, he struck out the next hitter to stop the bleeding. The cut reopened during the rest of his three-inning appearance, and he gave up seven total runs in three innings of his first rehearsal.

In the short minor league season to this point, Mathews has struggled with his command, walking nine batters in 7.2 innings. The lefty led all of the minors in strikeouts last season but has only tallied five total punchouts in his two starts. McGreevy has also had two starts, one good and one bad. In his season debut, McGreevy gave up four runs in four innings before bouncing back with a five-inning shutout with five strikeouts in his next start.