What should St. Louis Cardinals rotation look like in 2025?

The St. Louis Cardinals announced this week that they would be cutting payroll to improve their player development system significantly. How will those payroll cuts affect the major league team?

Cardinals executive Chaim Bloom was charged with overseeing the system changes in preparation for taking over as president of baseball operations in 2026. He'll also be involved in roster and payroll decisions along with current POBO John Mozeliak, Chairman Bill DeWitt Jr., and team president Bill DeWitt III.

During the press conference, it appeared that BD3 would be tasked with figuring out the numbers before the baseball operations would get to work on the 2025 team. However, the Cardinals should be able to fund their player development system while putting together a highly competitive team for the 2025 season and beyond.

No one should believe this team is so downtrodden that they couldn't do both.

What changes should Cardinals fans expect from the starting rotation?

The Cardinals should have a younger look but still need some veteran help. Veteran leadership is required on this team.

Andre Pallante and Michael McGreevy were impressive in their ability to go several innings and get strikeouts. They earned opportunities for a spot in the 2025 starting rotation. The young duo is under team control and will be inexpensive options for the team looking to cut costs.

Sonny Gray had to be frustrated with how his first season with the Cardinals went, as he and the team had huge expectations. Gray went 13-9 for the season with 203 strikeouts over 166.1 innings. He had a 3.84 ERA. Gray ended the season on the injured list with forearm tendonitis. The 2025 season will be the second year of his three-year contract. He is owed $25 million. He will be paid $35 million in the final year of his deal, and there is a club option for Gray in 2027 for $30 million.

There are reports the team could shop him for a deal during the offseason. While teams are interested in the top-tier arm, Gray has a full no-trade clause.

Kyle Gibson and Lance Lynn each have a club option for 2025 that could bring them $12 million, or the club could exercise a $1 million buyout. While it would be nice to have Gibson in the rotation or Lynn in the bullpen, the Cardinals will likely move on from the pair that brought some veteran leadership to the club in 2024.

Erick Fedde was traded to the Cardinals by the White Sox in a deal that sent Tommy Edman to the Los Angeles Dodgers. Fedde will have a one-year contract with the Cardinals for $7.5 million. The Cardinals will likely keep the low-cost arm and use him at the bottom of the rotation. He could be an option to shop again at the trade deadline.

It would be great to see the Cardinals try to move away from Miles Mikolas and Steven Matz this offseason. Both pitchers are in the final year of their contracts. Mikolas is owed $16 million, and Matz is owed $12 million. Both pitchers could be great options for teams looking to take on a veteran arm either this offseason or at the deadline. Relieving themselves of these two contracts could financially benefit the Cardinals greatly.

If the Cardinals keep Gray, Fedde, McGreevy, and Pallante in the rotation, they would need to look for another starting pitcher, preferably a high-end, cost-controlled option.

The Cardinals are likely to do a lot of shopping this offseason, including broadcasting rights. There is no reason they can't drop some of the more expensive contracts, add some good major league-ready talent, and still upgrade their player development system.