5 Cardinals who are on bargain contracts, 3 who are massively overpaid

Believe it or not, first baseman Willson Contreras will be a small steal next year.

Wait, a man getting paid $18 million to play first base will be a good contract next year?

Yep!

Willson Contreras was the Cardinals' best offensive player last year. Among players with at least 300 plate appearances last year, Contreras led the team in wRC+ (140), slugging percentage (.468), on-base percentage (.380), OPS (.848), wOBA (.370), and ISO (.206). He slugged 15 home runs and drove in 36 base runners in only 358 plate appearances. So, yeah, Contreras was awesome on the offensive end of things.

He's changing positions now, and there's some concern that those numbers don't play well at first base, a position typically known for offensive prowess. In actuality, his stats stack up against some of the best first basemen in the sport from 2024.

Among first basemen with at least 300 plate appearances last year, Contreras would've finished third in wRC+ behind only Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Bryce Harper. His .848 OPS would have been fourth behind Guerrero Jr., Harper, and Freddie Freeman. In fact, even his 15 home runs would've placed him tied for 23rd, and he had at least 200 fewer plate appearances than most of the players ahead of him.

He's also getting paid significantly less than several of his counterparts. Vladdy Jr. is getting $28.5 million in his final year of arbitration. Bryce Harper is on the books for $27.5 million. Freddie Freeman is owed $27 million. Pete Alonso just agreed to receive $30 million next year.

Assuming Contreras stays healthy, an important part of his move to first, he will finish as one of the best first basemen in the league next year.

Right-handed starter Erick Fedde will probably be underpaid in 2025.

The St. Louis Cardinals traded for Erick Fedde at the 2024 trade deadline due to his production up to that point in the year and his measly $7.5 million price tag in 2025. That dollar value will pay huge dividends to a team looking to get strong starting pitching for a fraction of the free agent market rate.

Fedde finished 2024 with a 3.30 ERA in 177.1 innings. He was a touch worse following the trade deadline, but his showing in September and October was reassuring, as he had a 2.83 ERA down the stretch last year.

There's a chance that Fedde reverts back to his old days of pitching where he wasn't as successful, but there's also a possibility that he pitches quite well next year and makes for a nice duo with Sonny Gray at the top of the rotation. His price tag paired with his potential output make him a bargain compared to other starting pitchers in his range.