The official ex-Cardinals team of 2024

Ah, the age-old practice of finding players who once played for the St. Louis Cardinals and found success playing for another franchise.

One of the gripes of fans of the Cardinals is that far too many players see success after being traded away from the organization or are signed via free agency away from the team. While this can sometimes be overstated, these arguments still hold plenty of water.

I did this exercise last year as well, and this is the roster that I came up with.

Infielders

Catcher: Carson Kelly
First baseman: Matt Carpenter
Second baseman: Kolten Wong
Third baseman: Edmundo Sosa
Shortstop: Paul DeJong

Outfielder/DH

Designated Hitter: Marcell Ozuna
Left field: Randy Arozarena
Center field: Harrison Bader
Right field: Adolis Garcia

Starting Rotation:

#1: Jordan Montgomery
#2: Sandy Alcantara
#3: Michael Wacha
#4: Jose Quintana
#5: Jack Flaherty

I also included Lane Thomas, Brad Miller, Tommy Pham, and Patrick Wisdom off the bench. Relievers Chris Stratton, Jordan Hicks, Genesis Cabrera, Luis Garcia, and Joe Kelly made the cut, too. That's a potent lineup that likely would have won more than 71 games strictly on the backs of a solid starting rotation and some high-octane hitters in the outfield and designated hitter spots.

This year, the bar was raised a little bit higher. Now the ex-Cards team must surpass at least 80 wins to beat this year's actual Cards roster.

Before I break down this year's roster of former Cardinals, let's establish some ground rules.

Rules

1. The player must have played the majority of his games at that particular position. For example, Marcell Ozuna played two games in left field last year. That's not enough to cut it.
2. The player has to have played at least one game for the St. Louis Cardinals. Former minor leaguers who were traded prior to seeing time at the majors don't count (sorry, Zac Gallen).
3. When possible, the players must be "qualified" according to FanGraphs. Some positions were difficult to meet this qualification (catcher), while others were quite easy.

Without further ado, let's begin! Here is the (semi) official former St. Louis Cardinals squad of 2024!

Infielders

Catcher: Carson Kelly

Carson Kelly makes the list again, partially by default. Very few of the organization's former catchers have found success elsewhere. This year, Kelly has accumulated 1.7 fWAR in 301 plate appearances. He has a .238/.316/.364 slash line for an OPS+ of 97. Most of his value has come from his defensive output. Kelly's 1.78 fWAR lags behind both Ivan Herrera (1.9 fWAR) and Willson Contreras (2.7 fWAR). Winner: current Cardinals.

First base: Juan Yepez

We have a newcomer! Juan Yepez started the year off in the minor leagues, but he broke out (mildly) for the Washington Nationals in the second half. He's played only 57 games, but he has a .277/.330/.437 slash line with six home runs. His 113 wRC+ exceeds that of Paul Goldschmidt for the Cardinals, but his fWAR total (0.4 fWAR) is dragged down by his negative defense. Goldy has accumulated 0.9 fWAR on the season. Winner: current Cardinals, barely

Second base: Richie Palacios

While Richie Palacios has played the bulk of his innings at second base this year, he's also seen ample time in left field, right field, and even third base. However, there were no other former Cardinals who played second base and reached even 100 plate appearances. Therefore, Palacios gets the nod. He has a .233/.350/.332 slash line for a 105 wRC+ and a total of 1.4 fWAR. Nolan Gorman played the most innings at second base for the Cardinals this year, and he finished with a slash line of .203/.271/.4002 and only 0.3 fWAR. Winner: ex-Cardinals

Third base: Edmundo Sosa

I'm not sure if it's the fact that the Cardinals have kept all of their good infielders or if these players have just been bad. However, Edmundo Sosa once again starts at third base for the 2024 ex-Cardinals. Sosa has a .263/.317/.433 slash line for a 108 wRC+ and 1.9 fWAR. Nolan Arenado, on the other hand, has a .269/.323/.391 slash line for a 101 wRC+ and a total of 3.0 fWAR. Winner: current Cardinals.

Shortstop: Paul DeJong

Had Masyn Winn not taken off this year, shortstop would have been a position of regret for the Cardinals. DeJong has put together quite a nice season with a slash line of .230/.277/.432 to go along with 24 home runs in 137 games. DeJong is still stout defensively, and he was able to rack up 1.7 fWAR. However, rookie sensation Masyn Winn outpaced DeJong during the year. Winn has a .267/.314/.406 slash line for a 101 wRC+. His defense has been superb, and he has 3.1 fWAR. Winner: current Cardinals.

Starting Pitchers

Up to this point, the current St. Louis Cardinals have heavily outpaced the ex-Cardinal group. This is where things begin to change, at least on the upper end of the rotation.

#1 starter: Michael Wacha

Michael Wacha has a 3.28 ERA, 3.59 FIP, and a 1.194 WHIP in 161.2 innings. He's been excellent for the Kansas City Royals this year, and his 3.3 fWAR total leads all former Cardinals. However, Sonny Gray outpaces Wacha according to fWAR. Gray has a 3.84 ERA, 3.12 FIP, and a 1.088 WHIP for a total of 3.8 fWAR. Winner: by fWAR, it's the current Cardinals, but Wacha's numbers outpace Gray's

#2 starter: Jack Flaherty

This is where the separation begins to show. The ex-Cardinals squad boasts two top-of-the-rotation starters in Wacha and Flaherty who are interchangeable. Flaherty has a 3.10 ERA, 3.41 FIP, and a 1.057 WHIP. Honestly, I would take Flaherty over Wacha, but his 3.2 fWAR in 157 innings places him a smidge below Wacha. The Cardinals' #2 starter by fWAR this year has been Miles Mikolas with a 5.35 ERA and 2.0 fWAR thanks to his 166.2 innings total and 4.20 FIP. Winner: ex-Cardinals

#3 starter: Jose Quintana

Jose Quintana makes this list once again, partially by default. Quintana has a 3.74 ERA and a 4.67 FIP in 166 innings. He's been a workhorse for the New York Mets, and his efforts have awarded him 0.8 fWAR. The Cardinals' #3 starter this year ended up being Andre Pallante. Pallante has a 3.47 ERA with a 3.71 FIP. He saved the rotation for most of the summer, and he finished the year with 1.7 fWAR. Winner: Andre Pallante of the current Cardinals.

#4 starter: Austin Gomber

By fWAR, Austin Gomber has had a better season than Jose Quintana. However, I couldn't justify putting a pitcher with a 4.75 ERA and a 4.83 FIP ahead of Quintana. Gomber has racked up 1.2 fWAR in 165 innings. The Cardinals' fourth-best starter this year by fWAR was Kyle Gibson. Gibby finished the year with a 4.24 ERA in 165.2 innings. That was good enough for 1.5 fWAR. Winner: current Cardinals by a hair once again.

#5 starter: Jordan Montgomery

Jordan Montgomery had one of the worst seasons of his career this year. He finished the season with a 6.40 ERA and a 4.49 FIP in only 104 innings due to injuries. He wasn't himself for the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2024. He finished the year with 0.7 fWAR. Conversely, the Cardinals' fifth-best starter this year was Lance Lynn with a 3.84 ERA and a 4.31 FIP in 117.1 innings. Injuries also limited Lynn, but he was able to finish 2024 with 1.3 fWAR. Winner: current Cardinals.

Final Tally

As of September 26th, the team of former Cardinals and the current rendition of Cardinals has literally the exact same fWAR total. Both squads have 26.7 fWAR right now; that's uncanny. To have a crop of former players be as good as the current team must happen quite rarely.

I'm not quite sure which roster and pitching staff I would take. The current Cardinals boast more depth in the rotation, but the former Cardinals have a better one-two punch with Michael Wacha and Jack Flaherty.

Meanwhile, the current Cardinals' lineup has significantly more balance throughout it. While players like Marcell Ozuna and Tyler O'Neill would be more formidable than any middle-of-the-lineup bats the Cardinals have, the lows of Carson Kelly and Harrison Bader make for an easy bottom-of-the-lineup to blow through.

From a bench perspective, the current Cardinals could employ Ivan Herrera, Jordan Walker, Luken Baker, and Pedro Pages The former Cardinals' bench would have to be carried by Tommy Edman -- who has been having a great second half with Los Angeles but didn't qualify for any one position -- Tommy Pham, Patrick Wisdom, and Andrew Knizner to have a viable bench.

The Cardinals' current relievers outpace any collection of former relievers who could be compiled. Thanks to a more balanced rotation, a deeper bench, and a stronger bullpen, the current team of Cardinals would surely beat the former Cardinals in a series.