By Chris Brown / STL Baseball Today | @cbrown_STLBBT | Dec. 2, 2015, 11:30 pm CT
After trading catcher Tony Cruz to the Royals and watching outfielder Peter Bourjos get claimed off waivers by the Phillies, the Cardinals saw drop to six the number of decisions they’d make in advance of Wednesday’s deadline to table formal contract offers to their arbitration-eligible players.
In widely expected moves, the redbirds made offers to first baseman Matt Adams, reliever Seth Maness, and closer Trevor Rosenthal. The team also opted to extend an offer to first baseman/corner outfielder Brandon Moss, who was acquired this past summer in a trade deadline deal with the Cleveland Indians.
By tendering contracts to those four, the Cardinals have “essentially agreed to a one-year deal with each,” as MLB.com’s Jenifer Langosh writes. Whether the player and team agree to terms or the cases go an arbitration hearing, all four are expected to be wearing the birds on the bat in 2016.
Those other two players may very well not be, as the Cardinals did not extend offers to reliever Steve Cishek and catcher Cody Stanley, making the pair free agents.
Stanley, a fourth-round pick St. Louis in the 2010 Draft, made his major league debut in 2015, collecting four hits in nine games while at the big league level. The 26-year-old was expected to be a part of the organization’s future catching plans until he was suspended 80 games for a second violation of MLB’s Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program on September 12.
Cishek, who lost has job as Miami’s closer after a poor start to the season. pitched well for the Cardinals down the stretch after being acquired in another trade deadline deal, posting a a 2.31 ERA over his final 23 1/3 innings.
However, in 2015, the 29-year-old saw his stats decline overall, pitching to a combined 3.58 ERA and 1.48 WHIP between Miami and St. Louis while making $6.65 million in his second year of salary arbitration. Cishek also saw a major increase in walk rate (2.9 BB/9 in 2014 to 4.4 in ’15) and major decrease in strikeout rate (11.6 K/9 in ’14 to 7.8 in ’15).
The side-armer was projected to make over $7 million in arbitration, and, as CBS Sports Jon Heyman reported back in mid-November, the redbirds decided to non-tender Cishek since “he’s been paid at a closer rate and is no longer a closer.”
Langosch writes the Cardinals haven’t ruled out re-signing Cishek, but only at a much lower rate than he would have made in arbitration.
Cishek served as the Marlins’ closer in both 2013 and 2014, posting a combined 2.73 ERA and 1.41 WHIP while tallying an impressive 73 saves.
More from STL Baseball Today:
Cardinals trade catcher Tony Cruz to Royals for minor league infielder
Phillies claim Peter Bourjos off waivers from Cardinals
Cards sign veteran catcher Pena to back up Molina
Cards reportedly finish second in bidding for Price, who agrees to historic deal with Boston
