Cardinals: 5 free agent targets to improve the club before Spring Training

Andrew Chafin

The fact that Andrew Chafin is still available on the free agent market seems to be related to his asking price - something Ken Rosenthal noted in a recent column. He did link the Cardinals to the lefty, and I think he would be an excellent addition to their bullpen.

Chafin posted a 2.83 ERA with a 10.5 K/9 over 57.1 innings with the Tigers in 2022 and opted out of a $6.5 million player option to enter free agency. He is primiarly uses a sinker and slider combination to get outs, and is coming off two excellent seasons.

FanGraphs has Chafin projected to hit the 63 inning mark with a 3.65 ERA in 2023, which seems to be on the lower end of his projected outcomes. There is always a bit of hesitancy to hand out a multi-year deal to veteran relievers, but if the Cardinals want to take their bullpen to the next level, taking a chance on Chafin may be the best way to do that.

Considering Matt Strahm signed a two-year, $15 million deal with the Phillies a month ago, it'll likely take a bit more than that to lock up Chafin unless the Cardinals are willing to wait out Chafin's asking price some more.