Cardinals can’t afford to ignore this bullpen gift from the Reds

While the St. Louis Cardinals continue to search for answers to their ongoing bullpen woes, the Cincinnati Reds may have just gift-wrapped them a solution in the form of veteran lefty Andrew Chafin, who just opted out of his contract with Cincinnati after they failed to bring him up to their Major League roster.

Chafin, who will be in his 13th Major League season if he throws a pitch for a big league club this year, has made quite the career for himself as an effective left-handed reliever, having most recently posted a 2.41 ERA in 42 appearances for the Washington Nationals and Los Angeles Angels in 2025. Chafin signed a minor league deal with the Reds at the end of March after he was granted release from a different minor league deal he signed with the Minnesota Twins, but he also did not make the Twins' MLB roster.

While there are certainly warts in Chafin's profile, without much in terms of secondary options, the Cardinals should give strong consideration to at least giving Chafin a shot to help stabilize their bullpen mix.

Andrew Chafin could give the Cardinals an effective left-handed option to help shore up their leaky bullpen

While Chafin has never been a big-time velocity guy, both his sinker and four-seam fastball sat in the mid-80s during spring training, and pair that with a 13.3% walk rate in 2025, there are plenty of reasons to be concerned about whether or not he'll be an impact reliever in 2026.

Still, Chafin has continued to be a valuable piece of bullpens over the last few years, even as his velocity has dipped, and he was sporting a 0.96 ERA in 10 appearances for the Reds' Triple-A affiliate. Considering how thin the Cardinals' current bullpen options are, I don't see any reason why they shouldn't take a shot on a guy like Chafin.

Chafin has already had stops with the Chicago Cubs and Milwaukee Brewers before, so he is very familiar with the NL Central. Chafin's quirky personality seems like it would be a fun fit in St. Louis, and while he'll turn 36 in June, the Cardinals could see him as a stabilizer for now and a potential trade chip at the deadline.

Chafin is very used to that reality, having been traded at five different deadlines and each of the last three.

The Reds and the Twins may have been skiddish about using Chafin in their Major League bullpen, but the Cardinals cannot afford to be that picky, given the state of their mix right now. It is for sure within the range of outcomes that Chafin is just bad for the Cardinals, or whatever team picks him up, but at this point, the Cardinals need to be willing to take that risk. Frankly, they've had plenty of bad performances already, so they can churn the group again if this one didn't work out.

But if Chafin does continue to defy the odds and pitch well, having a second, dependable lefty would be a much-needed boost to a bullpen that is trying to help sustain the Cardinals' early winning ways.

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