ºüÀêÊÓƵ

A total of 51â…“ innings, in case you were wondering. No more than 20 innings in one single season. None at all fewer less than 10 in 2019.

That is the previous experience catcher Willson Contreras has at first base, where the Cardinals now say he will be primarily used defensively when not occupying the designated hitter spot in manager Oli Marmol’s lineup.

This isn’t necessarily an endorsement of the experiment, but hey, at least this big change for Contreras isn’t being attempted on the fly during the start of a debut season with a new team. Progress!

Most will remember what happened in Contreras’ 2023 introduction, when the Cardinals, after realizing Contreras wasn’t Yadier Molina behind the plate — Though who is? — suddenly decided Contreras would be an outfielder. Problem was, Contreras either balked or wasn’t on board with the shift in the first place. The plan was quickly scrapped, but a player’s confidence was damaged and a rocky start between a team and its biggest free-agent acquisition of the previous offseason had to be mended over time.

Tentatively, this feels a little more optimistic. Potentially. It’s easy to be bright and sunny during the offseason. Last offseason, we were told Contreras had made great strides defensively, remember. Guess not.

If Contreras is unwilling to envision himself leaning into a non-catching career, he can ask out via trade. The Cardinals would be wise to find him a deal if that is or becomes the case. You don’t want disgruntled, highly paid veterans hanging around a retool. But you do want Contreras’ offense and energy, if he’s all in.

For now, Contreras seems to want to stay with the Cardinals instead of being traded away during a time of refocused attention on player development, one that includes clearing opportunities for younger catchers who the Cardinals see as having more defensive upside at the position than Contreras. If Contreras objects to that, now would be the time to make noise. None yet. There’s potential upside for him here.

Contreras has been the team’s best and most reliable hitter lately, and getting him out from behind the plate will reduce his risk of injuries, hopefully keeping his bat in the lineup. Oh, and the Cardinals do have a real need at first. Paul Goldschmidt is a free agent on the open market, leaving a Gold Glove-caliber hole at his mainstay position. Brendan Donovan and Alec Burleson are versatile enough to get reps elsewhere. Luken Baker could get squeezed some, but that’s been the story of Baker’s career here.

The Cardinals are a better offense if Contreras can get in the lineup multiple ways when not catching. This does that.

I don’t necessarily agree that the quality of Contreras’ catching demands a position change, but it’s clear that the Cardinals don’t see Contreras as their long-term answer behind the plate, and this is the season where intentionally lowered expectations about overall team performance lends itself to leaning into longer-term decisions. Contreras also doesn’t have a lot of catcher trade value. As a bat, yes. But not much as a backstop. Not anymore. The Cubs squashed it before his free agency, and the Cardinals have done more of it themselves despite signing him to catch.

It seems important to note there is no guarantee this experiment will produce better catching in 2025. But the Cardinals are for the first time in a long time not trying to guarantee a better team. This upcoming season is about future seasons and crossed fingers that lowered expectations can produce results that feel like a pleasant surprise.

So I’m OK with the Cardinals experimenting in 2025 to see what works and what doesn’t moving forward. They shouldn’t stop with Contreras.

I hope the Cardinals experiment some with Jordan Walker and Nolan Gorman at the corner infield spots. There’s no guarantee right now that third baseman Nolan Arenado will be back or that he will be here through the remainder of his contract if he does start the season with the Cardinals. If the Cardinals whiffed on evaluating Contreras at catcher, maybe they whiffed on moving Walker and Gorman off third base as their defensive homes. Some reps at first and third for both would not hurt, especially if Arenado wants out and gets dealt.

I hope the Cardinals experiment with rebranding Steven Matz as a full-time reliever. He’s unreliable in the rotation and shows more upside out of the bullpen. Health and performance have limited Matz to just 34 starts over three seasons. He’s yet to pitch more than 105 innings in a Cardinals uniform in one season. The 33-year-old’s career ERA as a starter has climbed to 4.35 with an opponent on-base plus slugging percentage (OPS) of .759.

But as a reliever Matz has protected a 2.97 ERA with a .650 opponent OPS. Matz always seems to wind up in the bullpen. Why not start him there? It could perhaps keep him healthy longer, get more effective value from his contract and create more opportunity for a younger starter who has more upside moving forward.

I hope the Cardinals experiment with not experimenting with Michael McGreevy. In years past, he would probably become the promising young rotation candidate who gets fast-tracked as a reliever first, perhaps to never find his way back to the rotation at all.

The Cardinals have to stop pointing to Carlos Martinez and Adam Wainwright as guys who made those changes look easy. They have more recent evidence of guys who get caught in the middle, or perhaps mislabeled entirely, like the resilient Andre Pallante.

If McGreevy can’t earn a rotation spot, he should make starts in the minors until he forces a promotion through performance.

And if Ryan Helsley is still around, though there’s no guarantee he will be if trade asks are too good to turn down, I hope the Cardinals experiment with him as a starter, at least in spring training. What didn’t work out for ex-Cards flamethrower Jordan Hicks in San Francisco could work out for Helsley elsewhere, if a creative team tests him out in the rotation after his domination as a closer.

The Cardinals should run the test first, so they have a truer feel for Helsley’s potential before his free-agent window opens.

This is going to be an experimental season for the Cardinals. Contreras at first base doesn’t have to be the last.

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SAN ANTONIO — When the Cardinals left for Texas at the start of the week to begin an offseason in which everything would not be bigger — not spending, not expectations — they had just trimmed millions off their upcoming payroll and braced themselves for what Election Day and telecast turbulence had in store for them next.

They returned Thursday after an eventful 48 hours for their financial view as an organization, and awaiting them in ºüÀêÊÓƵ was greater “clarityâ€� for their big-league payroll.

The Cardinals finalized a new, expanded broadcast rights deal Thursday with partner FanDuel Sports Network, which was previously known as Bally Sports Midwest. The deal replaces the previous one and reduces the revenue. Entering the offseason, the Cardinals indicated two of the factors for reducing payroll were the expected dip in rights revenues and sluggish ticket sales after consecutive disappointing seasons. A wild card on the ledger was Missouri’s Amendment 2, which had the potential to open up a new revenue stream through legalizing sports betting, and it narrowly passed.

“This all does start to clarify where our budget can be,� club President Bill DeWitt III said Thursday when asked about the impact on major league spending. “We have an answer what our broadcasts will look like and how fans will watch games, and we can focus on what it looks like as sports betting becomes legal and project what possible sources of revenues that creates. I think (from a player standpoint) we’re still sorting through additions and subtractions and what is available out there.

“We’re feeling more comfortable with where we are.�

Through trades during the season, free agency at the end of the season and the recent decision to decline options on all three players with them, the Cardinals have cut more than $60 million from their opening day, 26-player payroll that started this season. They opened the year around $180 million, and their total spending on the 40-player roster exceeded $200 million for the first time.

The options declined this past week trimmed $30 million off the 2025 payroll. Some of that will cover raises due starter Sonny Gray and a handful of arbitration-eligible players, including record-setting closer Ryan Helsley. Gray is set for a $15 million bump, and Helsley could see an increase of around $4 million in his third and final year of arbitration rights.

The Cardinals, like several teams dealing with TV turmoil, do not yet have a budget for their big league payroll. An executive at the annual general manager meetings this past week in Texas called the collapse of regional sports networks and Diamond Sports Group’s bankruptcy this offseason’s “great disruption.� Agents received a briefing on it Thursday during their meetings in Texas.

It is common for the Cardinals to not to set a single specific budget number for baseball operations, entering the winter with a range that can shift based on acquisition opportunities. This year, they started knowing they would have to cut — to some point yet to be determined.

“Our strategy from a payroll standpoint — lower revenue from our TV package, and we’ll have lower ticket revenue than we’ve had in a few years,� said John Mozeliak, president of baseball operations. “(That influences) how we think about our spending.�

From the 15-year, $1.1 billion rights deal that was overwritten by Thursday’s agreement, the Cardinals expected to get around $75 million from their broadcast partner, a source described. (The Post-Dispatch previously reported it would be around $78 million based on the initial deal and factors like escalators, inflation and joint advertising.) Despite now including digital rights and a forthcoming direct-to-consumer streaming product, the new multiyear deal is a 23% reduction in rights fees — or $17.3 million in its first year.

The Cardinals project that cut to be smaller than if they had elected to jump to MLB Media in 2025, as teams such as San Diego and Minnesota have already done. The MLB Media model is also subscription-based for streaming with revenues coming from those, and clubs also get advertising revenue from their games and whatever fees are paid by the cable distributor to carry the games.

The Cardinals payroll would have reflected the steeper drop.

With what DeWitt called “more clarity,� the Cardinals can adjust their offseason strategy accordingly. They are still committed to a greater investment in player development by increasing staff, facilities and technology. In the coming weeks, the Cardinals will canvass other clubs to measure the interest in some of their higher-salary players, and that will include Nolan Arenado, Miles Mikolas and Steven Matz. The Cardinals expect to receive more overtures for Helsley, though one source said they’re inclined to keep the closer unless overwhelmed.

The Cardinals want to know what interests and offers are out there before bringing any to Arenado or Mikolas, both of whom have no-trade clauses. Gray does as well but has expressed a preference to stay, the Post-Dispatch reported Wednesday. Willson Contreras, who also has a no-trade clause, “definitely wanted to be a part of this,� Mozeliak said.

The Cardinals never advertised a “fire sale� of veteran players, but having an answer on their broadcast front means they won’t be motivated to dump as much salary as they can.

“Most of the deals that we would be contemplating are players with no-trades,� Mozeliak said. “You have those hurdles to navigate, but you also have to find a match. Having said that, when you look at how our club is set up we basically had three players come up (on options). We’re not currently going after Goldy (free agent Paul Goldschmidt). We have moved some dollars. As we navigate the next four to eight weeks, it is going to be: How can we better our club, how can we better our future, and what does that look like?�

That answer will address the revenue question that lingers.

The Cardinals remain braced for a sag in ticket sales, whether that’s season ticket renewals or the single-game sales. One of the early accelerant for future ticket sales during a season is how the team performs in April. The Cardinals know where their fans can watch them on TV that month, know they’ll have a rights fee paid by then, know there will be progress toward a new revenue stream from sports betting or a sportsbook housed at Ballpark Village. What they don’t yet know is one of the leading indicators for ratings, tickets and foot traffic.

Or how good they’ll be on the field.

“Whatever you do media-wise, where people can watch our games, or ticket-wise and how we bring them to the ballpark,� DeWitt said, “a good team helps in every way.�

GM meetings roundup

Some of the Cardinals’ other activity at Major League Baseball’s annual first gathering of front offices in the offseason: The Cardinals signed a minor league deal with pitcher Michael Gomez.

The right-hander spent this past season with Tampa Bay’s Class AAA affiliate and went 3-4 with a 5.01 ERA in 39 relief appearances. He had 68 strikeouts in 55 2/3 innings — a strikeout rate that the Cardinals have chased when building their bullpen contenders for spring training.

• The team also signed lefty Packy Naughton to a two-year minor league deal that allows him to rehab from elbow surgery for most of 2025 and remain in the organization when healthy. He had stints as a lefty swingman in the majors for the Cardinal from 2022-23.
• The Cardinals expect to hire a farm director in the near future, and once that person is in place, they’ll begin populating new positions throughout player development. Among the coaching roles the Cardinals plan
• to hire are catching coordinator, outfield coordinator and possibly a field coordinator. These roles have been vacant for several years, some since the pandemic led to staff downsizing.

A primer on the Cardinals’ new TV deal: How your viewing options are changing.

Cardinals games will now be offered via direct-to-consumer streaming, which will both provide a new way to watch as well as expand access to many more fans.

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The Cardinals on Thursday announced a new deal to stay with FanDuel Sports Network, the channel formerly known as Bally Sports.

That’s the same network, though under a new name, that has broadcast the team’s games for years.

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The biggest change, however, is the inclusion of direct-to-consumer streaming, a long-awaited and much-sought-after addition to your options to view the Cardinals.

The lack of direct-to-consumer streaming is part of the reason for the team’s significantly declining viewership levels over the past two seasons.

It left many fans frustrated, blacked out from games.

Here’s a look at what the new deal means and how it impacts your options to watch Cardinals games.

What if you’re a cable television subscriber with access to FanDuel Sports?

If you already have FanDuel Sports Midwest as part of your cable or satellite television package, little changes. FanDuel Sports is available in ºüÀêÊÓƵ on Spectrum, U-verse TV, DirecTV, DirecTV Stream and Fubo.

You will still be able to stream games, as well, meaning that you can use a login from your TV provider to watch Cardinals games via the or its app.

If you’ve been keeping your cable television subscription mainly for Cardinals games, the new deal also provides you the option to cut the cord while still watching the Cardinals.

If you have cable or satellite but your provider doesn’t offer FanDuel Sports Midwest, you will be able to, assuming you’re within the team’s extensive television territory, pay FanDuel Sports directly to stream the games.

What’s direct-to-consumer streaming?

Direct-to-consumer streaming cuts out the middle man, the cable company. So if you don’t want to subscribe to cable television (or a streaming equivalent like Fubo), you can buy access to Cardinals games as long as you’re in the team’s television territory.

Under the new deal, fans in the Cardinals’ television territory will be able to purchase a subscription directly from FanDuel Sports Network to watch Cardinals games, either via the FanDuel website or its app on your smart TV, cellphone or tablet.

Pricing details have not yet been released, but it could be about $20 a month. That’s the cost to stream the network’s current offerings. That’s also what’s charged by some other MLB teams. A discount could be offered if you choose to pay for the full season.

What is the Cardinals’ television territory?

Every Major League Baseball team has a specific television territory, and the Cardinals’ includes all or parts of nine states and is one of baseball’s largest. It overlaps with territories of numerous surrounding teams. Many fans outside of major metropolitan areas are in the territories of multiple teams.

The Cardinals’ television market includes most of Illinois and Missouri, all of Iowa, Arkansas and Oklahoma and parts of southeast Kansas in and around Pittsburg, northwest Mississippi, western Tennessee, western Kentucky and southwest Indiana.

Fans in some areas, including all of Iowa, are within the television territory of six teams.

If you live in any area that’s part of the Cardinals’ television territory, you will soon be able to purchase direct-to-consumer streaming from FanDuel Sports Network.

How does the deal expand access across the team’s television territory?

Television providers in many of those areas within the team’s territory but far from ºüÀêÊÓƵ don’t offer FanDuel Sports Midwest, so residents didn’t have a way to legally watch Cardinals games.

Sometimes carriage disputes, or squabbles between a cable company and FanDuel Sports’ parent company, Diamond Sports Group, cut off fans’ access, as well.

The team’s games on are blacked out within the Cardinals’ television territory, as that product is intended only for out-of-market fans.

Cardinals ownership has called these blackout policies “archaic.�

MLB commissioner Rob Manfred said at a luncheon in 2023 that at the time only 15% of homes in the Cardinals’ television territory had access to the team’s games.

“It’s because of cord cutting and the fact that operators like Diamond have not even gotten full distribution within the traditional cable bundle,� Manfred said, according to .

“The problem is we granted exclusivity in places where the cable distributors never actually distributed the product,� Manfred said. “Those people are just out of luck right now.�

Cardinals fans in far-flung corners of the team’s TV territory are no longer out of luck. They will be able to buy directly from FanDuel Sports.

Why do the Cardinals have such a large television territory?

For many years, the Cardinals were baseball’s most southerly and westerly team. This changed when the Athletics relocated to Kansas City in 1955.

In the first half of the 20th century, the Cardinals may have been the nearest or perhaps most accessible team for many, and the booming KMOX radio signal blanketed the middle of the country with Cardinals games nightly. The team still maintains a , covering parts of eight states.

The team’s television territory exists mainly to guard the exclusivity of television rights-holders, protecting their investment by making sure that the vast majority of Cardinals fans who want to watch games pay FanDuel Sports, either indirectly through a cable subscription or, now directly via direct-to-consumer streaming.

The television territory is not intended to boost in-person attendance, as it includes places as far as a 12-hour one-way drive from Busch Stadium.

Who can’t purchase direct-to-consumer streaming? What are your options?

If you live outside of the Cardinals’ , there won’t be much of a change. To watch Cardinals games, you’ll likely still need to purchase or its television equivalent, MLB Extra Innings. Both air out-of-market games.

Fans can input their ZIP code on to make sure they won’t be blacked out from Cardinals games before purchasing .

ST. LOUIS — The Cardinals will stay with broadcast partner Bally Sports, recently renamed FanDuel Sports Network, and launch a direct-to-consumer streaming product, the club announced Thursday.

The deal continues the team’s partnership with Diamond Sports Group, parent company of FanDuel Sports Network, in a multiyear rights agreement. It replaces a 15-year, $1.1 billion deal before the Cardinals and their broadcast partner reached that agreement’s midpoint.

New under the agreement is a direct-to-consumer model where subscribers to the FanDuel network app can stream Cardinals games without a television or satellite provider.

The games will not be blacked out in the local market. And in surrounding regional areas that have been unable to access Cardinals games due to blackouts, the club’s app will aim to allow access without those limitations.

Financial terms of the new deal were not disclosed. But a source with knowledge of the deal told the Post-Dispatch that the Cardinals took a 23% reduction from their expected payment in 2025. With the team expecting around $75 million in rights fees for the coming regular season, that cut is close to $17.3 million even with the addition of digital rights, which the Cardinals had previously possessed.

As part owner of their broadcast partner, related revenues could fluctuate.

The Cardinals, once one of the most profitable of Diamond Sports Group’s stable, are the first of the joint-venture clubs to reach an agreement after being approached by FanDuel Sports Network’s parent company to rework an existing deal at a lower rate.

“This definitely is great news for fans, particularly those who have cut the cord or have been dropped from their cable provider or those who have just experienced blackouts that keep them from Cardinals baseball,� Bill DeWitt III, the Cardinals team president, said in a phone interview. “This is going to increase access and availability, particularly in markets where fans have been unable to get the games they want.�

FanDuel Sports Network Midwest will broadcast all games that are not exclusively televised nationally, plus pre- and post-game shows and original programming.

For outer markets and fans who use MLB TV to watch Cardinals games, their access will not change, and the production will appear the same.

MLB TV watched in ºüÀêÊÓƵ may still have blackout games, as before.

More information on app pricing and subscriptions will be announced at a later date. Among the discussions the Cardinals are having is whether the app will pair them and the Blues together, or how the app subscription model will be oriented.

Other major-league teams have charged $20 a month during the regular season with a reduced rate for purchasing the entire season.

Diamond did not say how many years the agreement covers.

But it is not a decadelong deal like previous broadcast agreements, an official said, and there are options built into the new contract that give the Cardinals some direction if Diamond Sports Group continues to experience financial turbulence, does not emerge from ongoing bankruptcy hearings, or an alternative model emerges.

“We are pleased to enhance and expand our long-term partnership with Diamond and FanDuel Sports Network Midwest,� DeWitt said in a statement. “We valued the continuity for our fans of staying on the same network as the Blues, and we are excited that we will now be able to expand access to our games and other great Cardinals content across multiple platforms next year.�

The Cardinals and their broadcast partner also have agreements for signage and studio space at Ballpark Village.

The alternative to a new agreement with Diamond was joining other clubs with MLB Media. Launched by the commissioner’s office, MLB Media has helped teams that have lost their broadcast deals during Diamond’s bankruptcy.

MLB Media lands the team on local cable providers while also providing a direct-to-consumer streaming option and funneling advertising revenue to the clubs. But it would have been a steeper cut into Cardinals broadcast revenues.

As recently as Thursday morning, during a presentation at MLB-related meetings in San Antonio, the Cardinals were listed as an example of a team that was going to have to cut spending due to reduced revenues from their television rights deal.

The Cardinals believe their new deal gives them “clarity� that had been lacking going into this offseason.

Diamond, which operates 16 regional sports networks, has been in bankruptcy proceedings since March 2023, a result of dwindling cable viewership over the years. During a recent court appearance, the company signaled that it could drop broadcasts for the Cardinals and 10 other MLB teams, surprising stakeholders and consumers.

A final hearing in the bankruptcy case is scheduled for next week. Diamond will make a case in front of a Houston judge that it should be approved to emerge from bankruptcy and reorganize.

David Preschlack, CEO of Diamond, said they remain in discussions with the other MLB team partners on future plans.

“As we progress toward emergence from bankruptcy, we remain committed to providing fans in the Midwest region with high quality broadcasts through our linear and digital offerings and meeting fans where they are in the evolving viewership model,� Preschlack said in a statement.

Already, the Milwaukee Brewers, Cleveland Guardians and Minnesota Twins have opted to distribute local games through an MLB-run operation for the 2025 season. They join the Arizona Diamondbacks, Colorado Rockies and San Diego Padres.

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Joey Zanaboni grew up in ºüÀêÊÓƵ, honing his broadcasting skills as a kid by describing his brother’s games to his sisters while sometimes impersonating prominent local sportscaster Ken Wilson.

He turned those childhood calls into a professional career, as Zanaboni is City SC’s radio play-by-play broadcaster to top his varied and extensive resume. Now in a way he’s following Wilson’s lead again.

Wilson spent last winter Down Under, where he broadcast home games of the Brisbane Bandits of the Australian Baseball League. Zanaboni, with City SC’s Major League Soccer season now over, also has taken an overseas assignment. He’s in the United Arab Emirates this week to call games in the Arab Classic baseball tournament.

It should be a fun assignment for Zanaboni, who has broadcast a considerable number of minor league baseball games on his trek up the career ladder. He hopes he isn’t done ascending those steps, as he hasn’t climbed high enough yet to not need a side gig. He had been teaching literature and English at Holy Cross Academy, a Catholic middle school in Webster Groves, but has reduced his role in education to being a substitute instructor in English and math at multiple schools around the area. That move gives him more time to devote to his quest to reach his sportscasting goals.

“For so many years, baseball was my ‘main’ sport,â€� Zanaboni said. “I am living my dream in soccer as the announcer for City, and I don’t make any secret that I am ºüÀêÊÓƵ through and through. I want to represent ºüÀêÊÓƵ on the radio in baseball as well.â€�

He has an excitable, over-the-top showmanship style punctuated by attention-grabbing one-liners referencing anything from current events to pop culture to the arcane. To wit:

Once after a City goal: “Joao Klauss cramming things home like a hoarder family in a secondhand RV!�

And: “Sealed it like he used to be married to Heidi Klum!� he shouted after City goalkeeper Roman Burki made a big save (singer Seal once was married to supermodel Klum).

While it works for him in his broadcast ventures, which have included Ambush soccer as well as college baseball and basketball, how his boisterous delivery would translate to a traditionally much more staid Major League Baseball booth would be open for debate. But he’s ready for that conversation to begin.

“One dream I’ve always had is to work with the Cardinals,� he said. “A spring training game, a little fill-in work. As fans of my baseball stuff know and as City fans know, it’d be electricity. That’s a guarantee. There’s so many fans, especially young ones, who come up to me when I’m at Busch Stadium watching a game to tell me they listen on Y98 (KYKY, 98.1 FM) and Apple TV. I know I can help a ballclub. So I hope the Birds on the Bat will be tuning in as well.�

The tourney he’s calling this week is being conducted in Dubai and is comprised of teams representing nine countries — India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Palestine and the UAE — and is being played in a new stadium.

This is the second consecutive year Zanaboni has been to Dubai to broadcast a baseball event, both conducted by Baseball United — a company promoting growth of the sport in the Middle East and India.

“In 2023, after joining City, I was focused on soccer and building our broadcast on Y98,” Zanaboni said. “When Baseball United came calling, it was a somewhat unexpected surprise. Last year’s showcase gave me an opportunity to stay involved on the baseball side in a big way. Our broadcast was carried in 127 countries and was on . I’m fortunate for the experience as a broadcaster and as a person.”

He says this year’s event is bigger.

“It is the largest, most competitive international baseball event ever in the Middle East and South Asia,� Zanaboni said. “I’m honored to be a part of it.

“One of the coolest parts about Baseball United is getting to see young players from countries where baseball is on the rise. Seeing some special young talents from around the globe is one of the major appeals of this job. Plus, Barry Larkin, Adrian Beltre and Elvis Andrus (former big leaguers who made appearances on the broadcast last year) have announced they will be in the house for the Arab Classic.�

The four-day event began Thursday and concludes Sunday, with Zanaboni scheduled to call multiple games each day that will be streamed on the website.

SAN ANTONIO — In the closing hours of his last general manager meetings atop baseball operations for the Cardinals, John Mozeliak had to dart “off campus� for an interview Wednesday night with a job candidate. He usually does not leave the host hotel much during these meetings, but then again, not much is usual about this year for him and these meetings for the Cardinals.

They annually arrive as a shopper — either tinkering with additions via trade or prepping for their offers to free agents, as they did a year ago for three starting pitchers. This year, in the resort’s lobby, the Cardinals joked with one agent that they had no reason to meet.

They’re not adding, not now.

They’re remodeling.

But, Mozeliak said before leaving, that doesn’t mean they’re bailing.

“I still think we’re going to be a better club than people think,� Mozeliak said. “I think we’ll surprise a few people. It’s my final year, so I hope we can win a few games.�

While much of the opening weeks of their offseason have focused on what the Cardinals will look like in the front office and on the financial ledger, the first significant move of how they’ll appear on the field in 2025 came Wednesday. The Cardinals are shifting All-Star catcher Willson Contreras to first base and designated hitter as his primary positions. Mozeliak said it is “unlikely� that Contreras catches many games. That achieves the Cardinals’ stated goal — like clearing playing time for younger catchers Pedro Pages and Ivan Herrera — and signals an answer to a significant question facing the Cardinals this winter:

Which vets want to stick around?

One of four veteran players with no-trade clauses who sought to be Cardinals because of the club’s history of contending, Contreras told the club that he would like to stay with ºüÀêÊÓƵ and not seek a trade. Mozeliak confirmed that exchange.

He has talked with the three others: Nolan Arenado, Sonny Gray and Miles Mikolas. Mozeliak declined to detail their wishes. Mozeliak said at least one player was open to the club exploring interest from other clubs.

Arenado’s agent and Gray’s agent declined to comment on the conversations, leaving that for the Cardinals. 

Gray told the Cardinals that his preference is to remain with them, two sources with knowledge of the talks described. Some of the things remain that made the Cardinals appealing to Gray a year ago when he signed a three-year, $75 million deal. And the right-hander has expressed interest in seeing where this “reset� and commitment to younger players leads.

The Cardinals have not advanced any trade discussions to a point where they can go to a player with possibilities. As this month progresses, the Cardinals are expected to gauge which teams have interest in Arenado and what they will offer, multiple sources described. At that point, the Cardinals can take information about potential suitors to Arenado for his consideration.

There are three years remaining on Arenado's deal, which is complicated by deferred money and cash from the Colorado Rockies.

The pitch Mozeliak has for current players is similar to why he believes they may be a “better club.� The Cardinals have made the financial cuts they sought by declining options, letting free agents go and shedding more than $60 million from this past season’s opening day, 26-player roster.

They have opened avenues for younger players like Herrera, Pages, Lars Nootbaar, Jordan Walker and Andre Pallante for guaranteed playing time. They have also, internally, sought to step back from their long-running brand after two consecutive seasons of falling short of its October-or-bust goal.

“I do feel like the pressures of always thinking you have to get to October, play in October, is tough for some of the younger players,� Mozeliak said. “And I think now with the notion of expectations are a little lower, I think a lot of these younger guys are going to be able to breathe and play with a little more freedom. That’s when we’ll get a sense of really, ‘Where are they?’ I feel like from a pure clubhouse standpoint that might be a relief.�

An aspect Mozeliak is referencing without saying is what the Post-Dispatch has previously referred to as the club’s “opportunity gap.�

The urgency to win at times led to decisions that limited playing time for younger players, whether that was chasing a center fielder like Dexter Fowler in free agency, trading younger players for shorter-term answers or being impatient with the performance of a young player when the team was struggling.

“We were always rushing to find the next better thing,� Mozeliak conceded Wednesday. “And now we’re going to say: No, we’re going to give it a little time to see what we really have. We’re going to let them go play and find out if they can make those adjustments, and let’s see if they can do it for us instead of us giving up on them and they’re not doing it for someone else.�

While moving Contreras from a position where there is youth to another position where there could be youth, the Cardinals see that as consistent with the goal.

And, Mozeliak stressed, better for Contreras’ career.

“We think not catching will make him a better hitter,� Mozeliak said.

The idea spawned from the team’s medical and training staff following a year when Contreras was limited by injury to 84 games. Those included an opponent’s swing fracturing his left forearm and a pitch breaking his finger while he was batting. When he was healthy, Contreras was the Cardinals’ leading hitter, and before the fractured forearm, he was charging toward another All-Star Game invite.

Contreras finished the year batting .262 with a .380 on-base percentage and .468 slugging percentage, good for an .848 OPS. Those were superb numbers for a catcher. At first base? Still superb.

When compared with everyday first basemen in the majors, Contreras’ average would rank ninth, his on-base percentage second and his slugging fourth. Contreras’ OPS would rank fourth right behind World Series MVP Freddie Freeman’s .854.

Contreras has played 11 games at first base in the majors and fewer than 52 innings, so defense will be part of this development. Mozeliak insisted that moving Contreras does not contradict the youth focus. Left-handed batter Alec Burleson will also see time at first, and the lineup can accommodate both with either appearing at DH.

“When you look at our club, obviously you can see a team,� Mozeliak said. “It’s not like, ‘Oh, boy, you have no bullpen.’ We have people. We have guys. Our team is not going to look all that different, right? There will be some changes. Part of this is going to be a guy like Pallante is going to get the opportunity to be a starter. Obviously (Steven) Matz is someone that we are hopeful he can rebound physically. We traded for (Erick) Fedde, and we think a lot of him. (Rookie Michael) McGreevy, right now, I don’t think it’s necessarily like guaranteed he’s in our rotation just because of who we have in front. But it wouldn’t shock me if he’s on the team in some form.�

Or, as the winter plays out, if he’s in the rotation.

Mozeliak said reducing the payroll further would give the Cardinals some “breathing room� headed into spring training. They will explore trades involving Matz and, if moved by the offer, Fedde. Agent Scott Boras on Wednesday said he expects the free-agent starters to move first, ahead of relievers, and if that market is rich, the Cardinals have cost-effective options to trade. The Cardinals will not be active in the free-agent market for starting pitchers.

If there’s an exception, it’s veteran Kyle Gibson, with whom the Cardinals want to keep in touch even after declining his $12 million option.

Gibson’s deal was one the Cardinals sped toward during the GM meetings a year ago. This year, the meetings had a different feel and different purpose for the Cardinals — like slipping away from the site to conduct interviews for staff, not seeking out agents to talk pitching staff. They’ve made their direction clear to peers and others, but when asked Wednesday how hard he planned to press the “reset� button, Mozeliak referred to his final year not being a lost year.

The Cardinals seek to raise a roster, not raze one.

“I’m not like looking to blow this thing up,� Mozeliak said.

And then he had to go.

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The pitcher wasn’t pitching. In fact, the pitcher couldn’t pitch. Yet the pitcher’s actions stuck with his coach more than a decade later.

“Even when he was hurt, he was a great teammate,� former Yale baseball coach John Stuper, a Cardinals 1982 World Series hero, said of left-handed pitcher Rob Cerfolio. “I remember him walking around practice after he had shoulder surgery. And walking around during games with a sling on his arm — on his left arm — and he’s trying to keep pitching charts with his right hand. Just any way that he could help, he was willing to do it. And that’s what you’re getting.�

The “youâ€� in that last line is you. Like, you — the ºüÀêÊÓƵ Cardinals fans who are yearning for positive change within the organizational structure. Well, ºüÀêÊÓƵ recently hired Cerfolio, 32, as the assistant general manager who will oversee development and performance. In other words — he’s the guy who will reimagine and then renovate the minor league system. He’ll make the hires and guide the process after a successful decade with the Cleveland franchise.

And Stuper is the in the middle of the Venn Diagram — he knows Cerfolio’s portfolio better than most and, as a onetime Cards minor leaguer and eventual World Series champ, he knows “The Cardinal Way� quite well.

So as we learn traits about Cerfolio, what stood out to Stuper about the former Bulldog pitcher? Well, that he was a bulldog. Via phone, Stuper passionately described the southpaw’s hunger to succeed.

And of course, there is the Yale aspect.

“At the Ivy League level, we talked between smart guys who play baseball as opposed to baseball players who are smart,� said Stuper, the rookie who famously pitched a complete game, 13-1 win in Game 6, which kept the Cards alive in the 1982 World Series.

“And obviously you want the latter, not the former. And that was Cerf. A really smart guy. ...

“But one of the things that has impressed me the most in my talks with him is character. I mean, it really matters. ... And when Cerf was interviewing for this job, he told me he met so many great people. High-character people in his view. And that was one of the main things that swayed him to take this job. And I mean, is there a better barometer than that, than character? I don’t think so.�

Of course, a key person in the hiring process was Cardinals executive Chaim Bloom, who will take over as president of baseball operations after the 2025 season. Bloom went to Yale, too — although he didn’t play baseball. But Stuper has developed a relationship with Bloom, primarily over text. One trait Stuper says Bloom and Cerf share? They’re unafraid to admit they don’t know everything. They want to soak up new concepts. They want to pick brains.

So over the years, certain college sports programs have developed a reputation. Penn State is informally “Linebacker U,� thanks to the likes of NaVorro Bowman, Sean Lee, Lavar Arrington and Jack Ham. Kentucky is “Point Guard U� with recent studs such as Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, De’Aaron Fox and Rob Dillingham. Even Mizzou called itself “D-Line U� with the likes of Darius Robinson, Charles Harris, Kony Ealy, Michael Sam, Aldon Smith and Sheldon Richardson.

Well, Yale’s baseball team is “Front Office U.�

Stuper, 67, coached at Yale from 1993 to 2022. Among his ballplaying alums are Cerfolio, Craig Breslow (who runs the Red Sox), Mike Elias (a former Cardinals scout who now runs the Orioles) and Charles Cook (assistant general manager of the Astros).

For years, Stuper discussed the famed “Cardinal Way� with his Yale players.

Stuper believes that longtime Cardinal instructor George Kissell, who inspired and instilled this mindset and playing philosophy, “has influenced probably more baseball players, even to this day after his death (in 2008), than anybody else.� By phone, Stuper spoke glowingly about the Cardinals’ dedication to fundamentals. He even mentioned that Kissell determined there were 17 different ground balls that could be hit to a second baseman.

So yeah, Stuper has often done some preaching while teaching — explaining what made the Cardinals so great was this brand of baseball and attention to detail.

“Sometimes you don’t realize your players are listening to you,� Stuper said with a laugh. “But apparently (Cerfolio) was. One thing he said was I talked a lot about the ‘Cardinal Way’ and playing the game right. And that, to me, that’s what the Guardians did. And he was a huge part of that — I mean, he was the director of player development.�

Stuper said Cerfolio is, naturally, a modern thinker of baseball regarding analytics — but “I think Cerf has some old-school to him, too. And that combination, to me, is the way to go.�

This should help as the Cardinals, who missed the playoffs the past two years, search to rediscover their way.

“(Cerfolio) texted me way early in the process (with the Cardinals),� Stuper said. “You know, we just talked back and forth a little bit. And I didn’t say this to him. I didn’t want to influence any decision, because it was really hard for him to leave Cleveland and he loved his staff and all that. But I was secretly sitting there going — man, I hope he goes to where the birds sit on the bat.�

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As Michael McGreevy experienced the growing pains of introducing a pitch he didn’t completely develop over the previous offseason into regular-season games with Class AAA Memphis this past season, the Cardinals prospect knew he needed to trust it despite some frustrating results.

With a cutter added to his arsenal, McGreevy posted a 5.81 ERA and allowed a .298 batting average through his first 11 starts for Memphis. But as he continued to take his turn in Memphis’ rotation, McGreevy saw just how effective that new pitch could make him once he got comfortable with it.

The improvements as he found a grip on his cutter led him to post a 2.72 ERA and kept hitters to a .224 batting average across 20 outings — four of which came in the majors — to end the 2024 major and minor league seasons.

“I think it’s just more confidence in myself,� McGreevy said in mid-September of his cutter’s strides. “The first month and a half was more development. And obviously you want to compete, but it was more like, ‘Hey, we’ve got to trust this process with the cutter and what we’re trying to accomplish.’ Once we were able to kind of catch our stride, it was just back to my normal self.�

The 24-year-old takes that development into the offseason as he prepares for the 2025 season that could begin for him a regular role in the majors as the Cardinals head for an organizational “reset� that will focus on youth.

“It’s something that we could build off of instead of trying to find like we did last offseason starting from nothing,� McGreevy said. “Just continuing to improve the (cutter) that is just another weapon to lefties. I’m excited to see where it goes.�

McGreevy began working on the cutter last winter following an offseason conversation with senior minor league pitching coordinator Tim Leveque. The pitch became a larger emphasis early in spring training after talks with Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol and pitching coach Dusty Blake. The idea for the cutter was to help McGreevy combat left-handed hitters, who batted .327 and slugged .503 against him in 2023 while he pitched in Class AA and Class AAA.

Through his first 11 starts this past season, left-handers batted .331 and slugged .551 against McGreevy, the Cardinals’ first-round pick in the 2021 MLB draft.

While he went through the shaky results, McGreevy received some advice from his Memphis teammates to find the right grip for his cutter. The advice he sought from his teammates led him to test out righty reliever Kyle Leahy’s slider grip. McGreevy began toying with with Leahy’s slider grip and noted that “turned into somewhat of my cutter grip.�

As his cutter grip began to form following the shaky start, McGreevy held left-handers to a .248 batting average and a .421 slugging percentage over 16 minor league starts. McGreevy’s strikeout rate went from 17.2% through his 11 starts to begin the year to 23.9% through his final 20 games, including his time in the majors following a July 31 call-up.

“I’ve done a lot of stuff with my own pitches,� Leahy said. “Mike just asked me what I feel and what I’m thinking about and what my thought process is, so I just told him, and ... I guess a couple of things worked out for him and helped him a little bit. I’m happy that I could help.�

Earlier this year, McGreevy described the need for a cutter as a “protect pitch� that’d help prevent left-handers from sitting on his curveball and slider. Although his curveball (.267 batting average allowed in 11 minor league starts through the end of May) fared better than it did in the final 16 starts he made (.364 batting average allowed), McGreevy’s slider kept lefties to a .170 batting average in his last 16 starts for Memphis after allowing a .316 average through his first 11.

The strides he made in Memphis translated to the majors in the form of a 1.96 ERA in 23 innings across four outings — one of which was a relief appearance. Opposing hitters batted .193 against McGreevy, who had a 3-0 record for the Cardinals. McGreevy’s 36 matchups against lefties in his brief sample of the majors combined for a .206 batting average.

As a whole for McGreevy in 2024, the former first-round pick went 12-8 with a 3.75 ERA and kept opposing hitters to a .690 on-base plus slugging percentage (OPS) across a career-high 173 innings between the majors and the minors. The cutter helped him boost his strikeout rate from 18% across 24 Class AAA starts in 2023 to 21.6% in the 27 Class AAA starts he made this past season. While in the majors, McGreevy collected 18 strikeouts and used his cutter as the put-away pitch for 33% of the batters he fanned.

“I think (early in the season), we were talking about it, and I’m like, yeah, I’m still messing around with it. It’s not great. Walks are up because I can’t really command it that well,� McGreevy said of the cutter. “But it’s been huge to lefties. Just seeing the growth is super-encouraging.�

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