The Cardinals bullpen has been one of the best in baseball.
Time to make it better.
While there are pros and cons to trading for a starting pitcher, it seems to be a low-risk, high-reward situation regarding the replenishing of the ’pen. Especially for a team such as the Cardinals, who play in a disproportionate number of close games.
Here’s thinking they get ahead on this and bring in an arm — or, in an ideal situation, bring home an arm.
Pete Fairbanks is enticing regardless of his resume, but the Tampa Bay closer is from Ƶ (Webster Groves High, to answer your question) and pitched at Mizzou, too. But let’s not make this about a homecoming; let’s make this about getting the right guy to get the right guys out. And the right-handed Fairbanks is a brilliant baseball mind with a brilliant arm. He earned the save Sunday at Yankee Stadium — a backdoor slider for a “backward K” — for his 18th save in 20 tries.
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He’s signed through next season and makes a surprisingly affordable $3.6 million.
With the Rays hovering around .500 and their history of player movement, its understandable that they’d likely move Fairbanks — and that many teams will want Fairbanks. But here’s hoping for Cards fans that the Ƶ front office gets ahead of the trade market to nab Fairbanks — or a different flamethrowing arm from a flailing team.
This could mean dealing catcher Ivan Herrera. Or outfielder Dylan Carlson. Make the move. That’s the price of doing business — and might be the price needed to be paid to make the playoffs.
The Cardinals bullpen has a 3.44 ERA, tied for fourth-best in baseball. Currently in a wild-card spot, the club could use an extra arm if only because the tight ballgames mean tired arms for the next tight ballgames.
This is not a knock on any current reliever. Heck, the resplendent Ryan Helsley is having one of the best seasons ever by a Cards closer — and think about how many great Cards closers you can name in even just a matter of seconds? JoJo Romero (2.43 ERA) has been quite good, though he hasn’t pitched in the past four games. And Andrew Kittredge, the working man who comes out to “The Working Man” by Rush, has a 3.38 ERA.
Oh, Ryan Fernandez has been reliable, though he made a bad pitch on Saturday for a homer. And John King and others have admirably contributed. But imagine a reinforcement such as Fairbanks? Opponents wouldn’t get much of a break in a series.
Manager Oliver Marmol, who many reading this wanted fired in May, has navigated his relievers well for the most part, evidenced in the fact they have the a great ERA and they’re healthy. The skipper often — and candidly — talks about tough decisions he must make with relievers in regard to usage.
There was a June series at Miami in which the Cards lost two of three. Some of his key arms weren’t available or weren’t used. Marmol recently said: “You’re tempted to unload and win another game or two while you’re there, at the expense of (arm availability in future games). But when you’re thinking big picture, it’s just not worth it. You have to stick to what you know and with what gives your guys the best chance to stay healthy.”
That brings us back to Fairbanks. Imagine if they had just one better arm in that series? Or in every series?
Another facet to all of this: Only four bullpens have a worse strikeout-per-nine-innings rate than do the Cardinals. Fairbanks strikes out nearly a batter an inning. His ERA is 3.38, and he’s only allowed two homers in his 34⅔ innings. And neither side has a great batting average against him — righties hit the righty to a tune of .212, while lefties hit the righty at a .233 clip.
Fairbanks throws it. He averages around 97 mph on his four-seam fastball. And opponents seldom barrel baseballs he throws — in fact, he’s in the 96th percentile for that category per Baseball Savant.
With Sunday’s win against Atlanta, the Cardinals are 52-47, five games back of first-place Milwaukee in the National League Central Division and currently, though not comfortably, in the second wild-card playoff spot (three teams qualify).
They also could use another right-handed bat, considering their current right-handed bats don’t slug much. And a new starter could be an upgrade, but that depends on the name — and you also must consider what names they’d give up to get him. But the team sure looks like buyers in 2024, which is an improvement from the cellar in 2023.
The first move should be to be bullish with the bullpen. Make every close game a nightmare for opponents.