Cardinals Reportedly Could Be In Mix For Reunion With All-Star After Stellar Season

The St. Louis Cardinals need to add multiple starting pitchers this offseason.

They already have been linked to multiple top-tier free-agent starters and may land one or two of them. Although this is the case, St. Louis will still need to add more depth with a No. 3 or No. 4 starter, as well. One player who reportedly could make sense is former San Diego Padres pitcher Michael Wacha, according to The Athletic's Tim Britton and Aaron Gleeman. 

"Wacha's career hasn't followed the typical aging curve," Britton and Gleeman said. "He arrived in the majors fully formed a decade ago, a rookie capable of dominating stout opposition in the postseason. He was a formidable starter before turning 25. The usual prime years of 27 through 29, though were rough on Wacha. He was well below league average in all three, on the cusp of washing out of major-league rotations entirely. 

"After altering his repertoire as a (Tampa Bay Ray) in 2021, Wacha has seen significantly better results over the past two seasons with Boston and San Diego. He's gone 25-6 in that time, throwing about 130 innings each season with an ERA 27 percent better than the league average. Wacha has pitched for five different teams over the past five years. This might be a chance, at 32, for some stability."

Britton and Gleeman took a look at baseball's best free agents and the top landing spots for each. The Cardinals were mentioned along with the Baltimore Orioles, Cincinnati Reds, and Los Angeles Angels as one of the top choices for the one-time All-Star. 

Wacha already has plenty of experience with the Cardinals. He was drafted in the first round of the 2012 Major League Baseball June Amateur Draft by St. Louis and spent the first seven seasons of his big league career with the club. He earned his lone All-Star nod in 2015 with St. Louis and won the National League Championship Series Most Valuable Player award in 2013.

Bringing Wacha back into the fold would be a solid move to raise the floor of the Cardinals' rotation. Wacha is a solid option after compiling a 3.22 ERA across 22 starts with the Padres in 2023. Pair him with hurlers like Philadelphia Phillies ace Aaron Nola and Orix Buffaloes phenom Yoshinobu Yamamoto and then the Cardinals might be ready to compete.