Former castoff could be low-risk answer for Cardinals lineup questions

The St. Louis Cardinals continue their roster tuneup along with the rest of the league when the non-tender deadline hit on Friday afternoon. While the Cardinals parted with no real players of consequence, other teams saw tough decisions arise on their 40-man rosters. The Texas Rangers were not immune to the roster crunch and a former friend could provide enough value to make it worth a reunion.

Adolis Garcia could provide short-term value for the Cardinals

As the roster deadline approached, players around the league were becoming fresh free agents and outfielder Adolis Garcia is one of those players now looking for a new team. Garcia, 32, was a member of the Cardinals organization before being DFA'd in 2019. After every team passed on Garcia, he wound up with the Texas Rangers, where he became an MVP candidate and postseason hero. His success caused fans to look down on former POBO John Mozeliak and blame him for a lack of evaluation, but the reality is every other team also passed on him and he did not see his success until two seasons after leaving St. Louis.

Garcia flashed electric potential while in Texas, hitting at least 25 homers, while also notching 11 stolen bases or more, in four of his five seasons with the Rangers. The outfielder always had some strikeout issues, but was near a league-average hitter or better every year until 2025. Last season, Garcia played in a Texas-tenure-low 135 games and struggled across the board with a .227 average and 19 homers, 75 RBIs, and a career-low 5.1% walk rate. The irony of that down campaign is that he would be second on the team in homers, RBI, and stolen bases.

Garcia was due an estimated $12 million in arbitration this offseason and Texas decided to save the money and allow the aging outfielder to find a deal elsewhere. He has had an interesting defensive profile in his career, grading out as elite in some seasons while being well below-average in others. If the Cardinals were looking to provide some intrigue to their lineup, Garcia could give them some value in a prove-it campaign.

Assuming the Cardinals deal Brendan Donovan and Nolan Arenado, there are some potential openings around the diamond. Outfield performance last season was poor, to put it nicely, and the Cardinals also got below-average output from the designated hitter spot. In an effort to keep Garcia healthy and provide defensive opportunities for the young players, St. Louis may want to offer him a one-year deal as the near-everyday DH.

If Garcia is able to bounce back and provide some of his previous offensive firepower, he could be a massive boost to a Cardinals lineup that is lacking pop and base-running prowess. Assuming that Garcia could get his OPS back into the mid-700s and he taps back into his 25-homer power, he could play his way into trade conversations and a longer, more lucrative deal next offseason. The Cardinals are not likely to compete next season, but they could provide an everyday opportunity for a veteran like Garcia to re-establish his value to the rest of the league.

While some fans would be understandably upset about dipping back into the well too late, Adolis Garcia could be a low-cost option for the Cardinals in 2026. With virtually every spot in the St. Louis lineup available, Garcia could be someone to pencil into the middle of the order and then build around.