Cardinals' division rival begins bullpen upheaval with former St. Louis standout

Phil Maton was an incredibly fun breakout story with the St. Louis Cardinals prior to getting dealt to the Texas Rangers on trade deadline day, logging a 2.35 ERA and 30.5% strikeout rate in 38 1/3 innings in St. Louis this past season.

The veteran reliever signed with the Cardinals in spring training and made the Opening Day roster, emerging as one of the more valuable rental relievers in the sport. At 32 and with a spotty track record of success, he was always going to be traded for prospects at the deadline, though hope persisted that a reunion was on the table.

Unfortunately, those hopes have been dashed in the worst possible way. Not only is Maton is signing a two-year deal with another team—he's joining the Chicago Cubs.

Phil Maton spurns Cardinals for high-leverage Cubs gig

Though details of his contract are not yet available, in terms of pure opportunity, it's hard to blame Maton for picking the North Side of Chicago.

The Cubs just won 92 games and pushed the No. 1 seed in the National League (the Milwaukee Brewers) to five games in the NLDS. Even without Kyle Tucker, they're a team in the middle of a competitive window.

Plus, after serving as a true set-up man with the Cardinals and Rangers, Maton could get a legitimate chance to close in Chicago. The Cubs are set to lose nearly their entire relief corps to free agency (or trade) this offseason, including postseason closer Brad Keller and trade deadline acquisitions Taylor Rogers, Michael Soroka, and Andrew Kittredge.

Considering how early in the offseason he signed, the right-hander surely got a nice deal, which was well earned after he had to wait until March 13 to sign in 2025. After his run of dominance in St. Louis, Maton turned in a 3.52 ERA in 23.0 innings with the Rangers.

For their part, the Cardinals got a pair of intriguing prospects back for Maton at the trade deadline: Skylar Hales and Mason Molina. At the time, Hales had a 7.64 ERA in 33 innings; Molina was far better, recording a 3.41 ERA and 30.5% strikeout rate in 74 innings.

That trend mostly continued after the trade. In Triple-A Memphis, Hales had a 5.40 ERA and 5.45 FIP in 16 appearances out of the bullpen. Meanwhile, Molina dominated in High-A Peoria, posting a 2.08 ERA and 29.0% strikeout rate, though his walk rate did jump to 16.1%.

Now a high-leverage reliever for a division rival, Cardinals fans will have to learn to root against Maton in 2026 and beyond, at least while he's playing against the Redbirds.