The Cardinals haven’t been fierce competitors in Hot Stove League play in recent years. They have proceeded cautiously while hoarding assets and exercising fiscal restraint.
We heard lots of talk about saving “dry powder” and targeting “low-hanging fruit.”
Bids to keep outfielder Jason Heyward and add pitcher David Price failed. Signing middling free agents Mike Leake, Seung-Hwan Oh, Dexter Fowler and Brett Cecil yielded middling results.
But the Cardinals are playing for real this winter. Various reports indicate they outbid the San Francisco Giants for Miami Marlins slugger Giancarlo Stanton by offering better prospects and accepting more of his ginormous contract in a proposed trade.