4 Cardinals who have been good but don't need to be resigned

Matt Carpenter has been good but doesn't need to be resigned

Surprisingly, Matt Carpenter has been one of the Cardinals' better bats this season. It's less a testament to a Carpenter resurgence and more an indictment on the Cardinals offense as a whole, but in his limited time returning to St. Louis, Carpenter has proved quite useful. Despite some recent struggles and stints on the IL, Carpenter has recorded a 95 OPS+ and 0.1 bWAR in his 52 appearances. For someone brought onto the roster as the 26th man and expected to get hardly any playing time, it's quite an impressive stat line.

With the younger players on the Cardinals roster only gaining experience and getting older, Matt Carpenter's presence as a veteran mentor will only be less necessary going forward. With the Cardinals needing more offensive pieces off the bench, there won't be a role for Carpenter going forward. He already isn't getting much playing time despite his productivity, so the Cardinals should look elsewhere to fill that roster spot.

Andrew Kittredge has been good but doesn't need to be resigned

Andrew Kittredge has been one of the Cardinals' most trusted high-leverage relievers this season, and it may almost seem to be a no-brainer to bring him back next year. However, underlying metrics indicate the veteran righty may not be worth bringing back next year. Kittredge's 2.98 ERA is a bit deceptive as his FIP and xERA are over a point higher, indicating he's gotten quite lucky this season.

Entering his age-35 season, Kittredge looks to be a clear candidate for regression in 2025. His hard-hit rate and average exit velocity are both below league average and with the volatility of relief pitchers, the Cardinals should look elsewhere to fill the right-handed setup role alongside JoJo Romero. With Chaim Bloom potentially at the helm, the Cardinals should find more talented pitchers like Ryan Fernandez rather than signing expensive free agents.