Chaim Bloom's comments on Cardinals pitching are so refreshing

Of the many issues that have plagued the St. Louis Cardinals in the 2020s, their lack of high-upside starting pitching has to be toward the top, if not at the very top, of that list. Especially their inability to develop it.

Until recently, the Cardinals were settling for expensive, veteran-led rotations that, outside of Sonny Gray, lacked the upside to win at a high level in today's game. That's a major problem. And those issues stemmed from the lack of arm talent developed internally, making an impact in their rotation.

2026 was actually a major step in the right direction. Dustin May, Michael McGreevy, Andre Pallante, Kyle Leahy, Quinn Mathews, and Hunter Dobbins brought a level of stability that they desperately needed, and those latter five arms were all young, cost-controlled pitchers whom the Cardinals can build with moving forward.

The Cardinals' starting rotation finished 12th in all of baseball in ERA, FIP, and fWAR, representing a solid rotation that could keep their team in ballgames and leverage a great defense behind them and the benefits of pitching at Busch Stadium. And they did so to the tune of much better payroll efficiency.

In 2026, the Cardinals spent just $9.40 million on their rotation when it was all said and done, according to Spotrac, the 29th-fewest dollars associated with a team's rotation last season and just one of two teams to spend under $10 million on that group (trading away Dustin May was part of the reason why). Even if the Cardinals kept May all year long, they still would've only spent the third-least on their rotation in the sport.

In 2025, they spent $47.07 million on their rotation (14th), they spent $71.46 million (fifth-most) and $53.51 million (10th) in 2023. I'd say the Cardinals did a much better job of resource allocation this time around, and that was made possible by having legitimate starting options developed that they could turn to.

Still, there was a lot left to be desired in terms of their swing-and-miss and overall ability to shut down opposing offenses. They ranked 24th in K% (20.1%), 26th in batting average against (.259), and allowed the fourth-highest hard-hit rate (35.7%) with the fourth-worst Stuff+ (94) among Major League rotations.

Derrick Goold captured quotes from Bloom during the MLB General Manager's meetings, and in their discussion about young arms like Tekaoh Roby, Cooper Hjerpe, and Richard Fitts, Bloom made it clear that their upside is exciting, and that this should be what the Cardinals are filling their rotation with moving forward.

“Guys like that have that type of upside that let’s try to put them in the best positions for success individually, and then in doing so, how can we help us win as many games as we can,” Bloom said. “(Let’s) not put limits on them. With both of those guys, I don’t think we should write off the chance of being legitimate – and you don’t need to qualify this at all – they’re just good major-league starting pitchers. They both bring something unique to the table. They’re very different. It’s a cool position to be in. To have guys like that who we can talk about in our picture for 2027,” Bloom concluded, “that is where we’re getting to and, frankly, that just needs to be the standard.” (bold and italics added for emphasis).

Chaim Bloom is raising the bar for what the Cardinals need to see from their rotation

It's that last line for me - "and frankly, that just needs to be the standard". That's a strong statement from the Cardinals' president of baseball operations, one that raises the bar for what they believe they need to produce

Don't get me wrong, the Cardinals' rotation right now is filled with big-league caliber arms. Having a McGreevy, Pallante, or Leahy is valuable for any pitching staff. But the Cardinals need more of the Leahy-type who had one of the best ERAs in the sport for a long stretch in 2026, or Mathews, who has legit strikeout stuff. Or arms coming like Cooper Hjerpe, Tekoah Roby, Liam Doyle, Tanner Franklin, Jurrangelo Cijntje, Richard Fitts, and more who have the upside to be more than just serviceable starters.

Establishing a strong base was critically important, and now the fun begins when they can start adding high-upside arms to that mix. The Cardinals are finally in a spot where they can actually dream about the type of upside entering their rotation, and don't need to rush to free agency or the trade market to fill multiple gaping holes in their rotation with veteran holdovers. Hopefully in one, two, or three offseasons, when they decide to go outside the organization to add a starter, it's because they are adding a "dude" to the top of that mix, rather than trying to make sure their rotation can just survive.

Good on Bloom for raising the bar publicly. He could have tooted their own horn and pointed out how their starting pitching overachieved compared to what many expected last year, but instead, Bloom is asking the organization to continue to level up, and fans couldn't agree more with that posture.

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