St. Louis Cardinals: 5 biggest disappointments from 2022

The St. Louis Cardinals had one of their more exciting seasons in franchise history in 2022, backed by MVP performances from Paul Goldschmidt and Nolan Arenado, an epic farewell for Yadier Molina and Albert Pujols, and a young core that began to emerge.

Even the best of seasons come with their share of disappointments. Whether it's player performances, injuries, front-office decisions, or playoff heartbreak. The Cardinals had their fair share of this in 2022. Each of these played a role in limiting the success of St. Louis in 2022, and some may have impacts on the club in 2023 and beyond.

Let's look at the five most disappointing things from 2022 as the Cardinals look to build toward a better year in 2023.

#5 - Paul DeJong's continued struggles

Many predicted this would be the case coming into 2022, but Paul DeJong continued to plummet from his once-promising career as a Cardinal.

Slashing .157/.245/.286 is about as bad as it can get in a single season, and the Cardinals have him on the books at $9 million for the 2023 season. DeJong was sent down to Triple-A Memphis for most of the summer, and after a few week long hot stretch upon his return, he regressed into the same patterns as before.

John Mozeliak has indicated that DeJong is working on adjustments that he had been resistant to over the last few seasons, so there is hope that the 29-year-old can turn things around in 2023. But as for his 2022 season, it was about as bad as it possibly could have gone.

#4 - The outfield's regression

Outside of a breakout season from Lars Nootbaar, the Cardinals outfield that held so much promise coming into 2022 left the team with tons of question marks entering 2023.

Tyler O'Neill struggled with injuries that limited him to just 96 games, and after finishing top 10 in MVP voting in 2021, finished the season slashing .228/.308/.392 with 14 HR and 58 RBI for the Cardinals. Like DeJong, O'Neill is making major changes this off-season, but his changes are geared toward preventing injuries so he can stay on the field and find his groove again.

Dylan Carlson took a step back after his promising rookie campaign. Although he showed that he can play really good defense in center field for St. Louis, his bat became unplayable at times, especially against right-handed pitching. He put up a .695 OPS in 128 games for St. Louis, but it sounds like he was battling some injuries that hampered him during the year. Carlson still holds a ton of promise, but like O'Neill, there are now legitimate questions about his future.

Harrison Bader was traded to the New York Yankees for Jordan Montgomery, so the Cardinals starting outfield on Opening Day is now either off of the team or have question marks surrounding them for 2023. Not the kind of season the Cardinals were expecting from their dynamic trio last season.

#3 - Question marks surrounding the rotation

On Opening Day 2022, the Cardinals rotation consisted of Adam Wainwright, Miles Mikolas, Steven Matz, Dakoda Hudson, and Jordan Hicks. Although the club has a stronger five-man group entering the 2023 season, the struggles to field a rotation last season and now the lack of an ace have been frustrating to observe.

One thing that John Mozeliak is excellent at is acquiring innings during a postseason run. J.A. Happ, Jon Lester, and Wade LeBlanc were enough to keep the Cardinals afloat in 2021, and he outdid himself in 2022 with trades for Jose Quintana and Jordan Montgomery. Still, one has to wonder whether or not the club could have done more in 2022 if he did not have to slug through the early summer stretch where their starters were dropping like flies.

At this point, the club does not have the same innings issue that it has had in past years, but there is a gaping hole at the top of the rotation. Jack Flaherty has the ability to fill that void, but it is fair to criticize the front office for not having a reliable ace at this point for the club. Trades for a starter could still be on the horizon, but at this rate, it looks like the club will roll with their current options to begin 2023.

Some have suggested the Cardinals could use another arm regardless of whether they are an ace or not, but I could not disagree more. On top of their five-man group of Flaherty, Mikolas, Montgomery, Wainwright, and Matz, they have depth options such as Hudson, Jack Woodford, Matthew Liberatore, and Andre Pallante, as well as prospects Connor Thomas and Gordon Graceffo who could be in St. Louis by mid-season. At this time, there is no need to grab another middle-to-back end of the rotation starter.

It remains to be seen whether or not St. Louis will acquire a front-line starter to pair with Flaherty. If they are able to do so by the trade deadline, this frustration from 2022 could be forgotten about rather quickly.

#2 - The lack of spending from ownership

I chose my words carefully here - I believe this is an ownership spending problem, not a reflection on the front office. John Mozeliak is often criticized for not going out and spending on big names, but he is not the one who sets the budget each year. If the Cardinals are limited to spending around $185 million this upcoming season, then Mozeliak has already spent almost all he can, and any frustrations about lack of spending should be taken up with ownership.

Currently, the Cardinals sit 16th in payroll, which is just unacceptable given what kind of organization this is. Smaller markets like the San Diego Padres and Colorado Rockies are outspending St. Louis. Yet, the Cardinals are miles away from the $200 million mark spending-wise and don't even come close to sniffing the luxury tax line. Nobody realistically expects the Cardinals to spend like the New York teams or even San Diego, but lagging as far as they have is embarrassing.

Yes, teams can win with major financial constraints in today's game, but the Cardinals are too big of an organization not to use it to their advantage and spend. Money does not guarentee titles, but it does help your chances a lot. It's time to spend, St. Louis.