Tuesday, October 13

The Cardinals did not make the playoffs in 2026 and, in fact, at 77-85, they lost one more game than they did in 2025. But you won’t find many Cardinals fans who aren’t coming out of this year with far more optimism than they had coming out of last year. The Cardinals overachieved in a rebuilding year and also learned who some of their long-term pieces are, from JJ Wetherholt to Jordan Walker to Joshua Báez to Leo Bernal. This team will be contending, and likely soon.

This offseason provides a fascinating opportunity, then. Here are the five biggest questions the Cardinals face.

Will they add a Dustin May-esque starting pitcher?

The Cardinals didn’t make many additions heading into the 2026 season, but the biggest one they did make turned out to be an unqualified success. May, brought in on a one-year deal last December, provided stability and a 4.38 ERA in 109 innings, which eased the burden on a rotation that didn’t have much certainty heading into the year. Even better, the Cardinals packaged him with reliever JoJo Romero at the Trade Deadline, sending him to Milwaukee in exchange for outfielders Alexander Frias and Josiah Ragsdale, who are currently ranked as the team’s No. 5 and No. 11 prospects by MLB Pipeline.

Even with fewer available rotation spots – it would seem Michael McGreevy, Andre Pallante, Kyle Leahy and Quinn Mathews should have a good claim on four of them – the Cardinals may be in the market for a similar free-agent starter this year. It would have to be someone with upside but not coming off a great contract year in 2025, the type of pitcher who might accept a one-year pillow contract. Kris Bubic? Shane Bieber? Heck, May again, after his disappointing stretch run in Milwaukee? It would seem to make some sense.

Whither third base?

“There is a long-term vacancy” at third base, said Cardinals president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom at his end-of-season press conference. He said that about no other position, which speaks both to the struggles of Nolan Gorman (who could end up non-tendered this offseason) and the lack of immediate options elsewhere (save for a good closing stretch from Thomas Saggese).

The Cardinals are very excited about their No. 15 prospect, Jesús Báez, who hit 39 homers in 113 Minor League games in 2026 and has to be added to the 40-man roster this offseason, but he hasn’t played in Triple-A yet and will likely start 2027 there. Will they let Saggese hold down the fort until Báez is ready? Will they sign a free agent on a one-year deal (Eugenio Suárez?) to give them some stability? Look to the trade market? There’s definitely a long-term vacancy here. There’s also a short-term one.

Will we get a sense of the plan for Iván Herrera?

Herrera had a good season for the Cardinals. He had a 111 OPS+ and a very solid .353 OBP, and he was a lineup fixture, playing 161 games. But his power was down from 2025 – he equaled his total of 19 homers despite playing 54 more games – and he faded in the second half (.684 OPS). Perhaps most worrisome is that his defense behind the plate (particularly his throwing) didn’t improve and may actually have regressed further. (Herrera caught just two of 47 base stealers in 2026.)

That’s a big problem on a team that’s as stacked at the catching position as the Cardinals are, with Bernal firmly establishing himself down the stretch as the starter, Jimmy Crooks a solid backup and slugging top prospect Rainiel Rodriguez (No. 10 on MLB Pipeline’s Top 100 list) likely arriving next year. Where does that leave Herrera? It might be time for the catching experiment to end, but he doesn’t really have another position and, while he’s a good hitter, he’s not quite exemplary enough to justify being slotted in as the all-time DH. Is he a potential trade candidate? (Any team could use his bat and could dream on his power.) Does he learn another position? Herrera is a big part of the Cardinals’ present. But is he part of the future?

Are there any extensions in the offing?

If the Cardinals believe players on the current roster will be a part of their next great team – and that next great team may be closer than previously thought – then an extension has to be considered. There would seem to be two very logical candidates: Jordan Walker and Alec Burleson. After his breakthrough season, Walker faded down the stretch, but the Cardinals now have proof of concept of his power and possibility. As for Burleson, he led the Majors in RBIs this year and has already said he’s interested in signing to make sure he stays around a while.

Burleson is due to become a free agent after the 2028 season; Walker, who’s three years younger than Burleson, gets there after 2029. Could the Cardinals make sure they’re both here into the next decade? It makes some sense. Or do they lock up players with even more team control, like they did with JJ Wetherholt? If they fully believe in Leo Bernal, now would be the time to think about that as well.

How aggressive will they be to improve immediately?

Bloom has made it explicitly clear that the Cardinals will not take “shortcuts” to contention; they will see this whole plan out and be as patient as needed to do so. But the Cardinals were surprisingly competitive this season, and with some clarity in the lineup and a bunch of pitching on the way, it’s not unreasonable to think they’ll be even better next year.

Do the Cardinals forecast enough improvement to be a little more aggressive without taking any sort of “shortcut?” Will they push harder for Jesús Báez and Rainiel Rodriguez to come up sooner? Will they eye bigger free agents? Will they push hard for the playoffs if they’re in the race at the Trade Deadline? The moves they make this offseason may offer early clues. But either way: There are many reasons to be excited, for 2027, and beyond.

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