The St. Louis Cardinals are finished adding free agents. Unless someone agrees to a minor league contract, John Mozeliak will not be adding any major talent to the 2024 roster.
However, there are still plenty of free agents available who once donned the Birds on the Bat.
Reunion tours are always enjoyable for fans. Players like Matt Carpenter and Lance Lynn have already been brought back this year for a reunion.
Perhaps bringing back players from a more successful time in the Cardinals’ history could provide a spark to the 2024 team.
Many of these free agents who played for the Cardinals had some of their best years in St. Louis, so perhaps they, too, could experience a resurgence with a return to their former stomping grounds.
In one of my recent pieces, I discussed 8 free agents who would be fun to see the Cardinals sign. That list includes three former Cardinals players, but I will revisit each of these players again.
Randal Grichuk, 32, played for the Cardinals from 2014-2017. He was traded to the Cardinals with Peter Bourjos for David Freese and Fernando Salas. Grichuk made his MLB debut on April 28, 2014 for the Cardinals.
During his four years in St. Louis, Randal Grichuk slashed .249/.297/.488 for an OPS+ of 107. He was able to hit for power, but his 32.1% strikeout percentage was far too high, even for someone who had 163 extra-base hits while with St. Louis. Grichuk was eventually traded to the Toronto Blue Jays for Dominic Leone and Connor Greene.
Grichuk’s showing with the Colorado Rockies this past season was strong. In 64 games, he was able to slash .308/.365/.496, and he hit 8 home runs.
The story was vastly different after he was traded to the Los Angeles Angels, but he has shown that he still has an ability to hit and play plus defense in the corner outfield.
