If the St. Louis Cardinals hope to return to the status of a contender, they have a lot of work ahead of them this offseason.
With 93 victories, St. Louis was the top team in the National League Central in 2022. Despite finishing in second place, the Milwaukee Brewers trailed the Cardinals by seven games. The Cardinals were predicted by many to be even more successful in 2023, but they only managed to win 71 games and finished in last place.
With 83 victories between 2022 and 2023, the rival Chicago Cubs advanced and won nine more games. Chicago might improve even more during the offseason, which would greatly complicate the NL Central division. According to ESPN’s Jesse Rogers, the Cubs plan to pursue Los Angeles Angels two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani this offseason.
“Ohtani, now the biggest free agent in the history of the sport, is deciding where he wants to play next, and the Cubs are again interested in courting him, according to sources familiar with the situation,” Rogers stated. “When the winners are revealed on Thursday night, Ohtani is predicted to win the American League Most Valuable Player Award for the second time. Although his abilities as a pitcher were well known, his actions at bat over the previous six seasons have surprised both executives and fans.”
The Cardinals would suffer greatly if Ohtani were to sign with the Cubs. Perhaps the greatest baseball player is Ohtani. His bat in the middle of the lineup would make the Cubs much better even if he is unable to pitch in 2024. Ohtani is probably going to get back on the mound in 2025 and help the Cubs win more games.
It’s too soon to say if the Cubs will be able to sign Ohtani, but they have previously and might do so once more. Ohtani and the Cubs are someone that Cardinals fans should be closely watching this offseason.
