The Cardinals started clearing and filling space on their 40-man roster Tuesday, and the first wave of moves brought a familiar arm back into the organization while another recent addition got scooped up by Baltimore.
St. Louis native Josh Fleming returned to the Cardinals on a minor league deal before the 4 p.m.
Central Time deadline that removed 60-day injured list designations across Major League Baseball for the offseason. Fleming, 30, is being added as rotation depth as the Cardinals head into the winter.
He has made 81 MLB appearances, including 25 starts, since 2020, and he logged six starts with the Memphis Redbirds after joining the Cardinals on a minor league contract. His most recent big league work came earlier this year with the Toronto Blue Jays.
With a number of arms in the mix for starts at both the Major League and Triple-A levels next season, Fleming gives St. Louis another option if injuries pile up or if the club wants to take a slower approach with some of its younger pitchers.
The roster juggling also included an unsuccessful attempt to sneak Chase Hampton through waivers. The Cardinals claimed Hampton in late September as their first offseason move, but he was claimed by the Baltimore Orioles instead and will not pitch for St.
Louis. Hampton, a former top-100 prospect with some Major League experience, had been viewed as a worthwhile project for the Orioles.
St. Louis appeared to be taking advantage of a crowded waiver landscape, with other teams also needing to make roster decisions, but Baltimore moved quickly to take him.
Max Rajcic was also reinstated from the 60-day injured list after his season ended early because of Tommy John surgery. Rajcic made his MLB debut with the Cardinals this year, though he is expected to need another 40-man roster move once the 2027 season begins because of the length of his recovery.
After those transactions, the Cardinals’ 40-man roster stands at 38.
More moves could still be coming. If there is a Rule 5 draft this offseason, Jesus Baez and Jacob Odle are both Rule 5 eligible and would likely need to be added to the roster.
St. Louis will also need room if it wants to bring in free agents or trade for players already on other clubs’ 40-man rosters.
And with the next month expected to be busy across baseball before the lockout, the Cardinals are set to keep working the edges of the roster as they look for a starter and/or reliever. These decisions all connect, and the churn around the 40-man roster figures to continue.
In Other News...
Cardinals Ties Could Suddenly Shape The Astros Next Dugout Move
The Astros front-office reset has a familiar Cardinals thread running through it, and it could matter quickly. Houston has brought in Randy Flores as its new general manager after parting ways with Dana Brown, and the search that led there included interviews with Brad Ausmus and Matt Kleine, with Kleine reportedly offered the job before Flores was hired. For Cardinals fans, Flores arrival is another reminder of how often St. Louis ties surface when another club starts reshaping itself.
Flores now has a short runway before the looming lockout, which means the next move has to come fast: hiring a manager. The list of names already circulating includes Ausmus, Albert Pujols, Yadier Molina and Morgan Ensberg, and the decision could say plenty about the direction Houston wants to take under its new GM. For now, the Astros dugout question is the one to watch, and the Cardinals connections are right in the middle of it. [Read more 🡒]
Cardinals Could Turn Andre Pallante Into The Roster Help They Need
The Cardinals spent much of the season searching for ways to reshape the roster, and Andre Pallante has emerged as one of the more interesting names in that conversation. Arizona is looking for controllable starting pitching, and the Diamondbacks and Cardinals have already done business in ways that have mattered, which gives this idea a little more weight than a typical offseason rumor. Pallantes projected arbitration salary also makes him the kind of arm that can draw attention from clubs trying to add cost-controlled pitching without overcommitting long term.
For St. Louis, the appeal is straightforward: if the Cardinals are going to move a starter, they would want the return to address a real need elsewhere on the roster. Pallantes profile gives them a trade chip with value, and the match with Arizona makes some sense on paper. Still, nothing has been announced, and for now it remains one of those offseason possibilities that could quietly gain traction if both sides decide the fit is right. [Read more 🡒]
Cardinals Young Core Just Fueled A Tough Gold Glove Debate
The Cardinals had plenty to point to on the defensive side this season, even if the Gold Glove hardware ended up going elsewhere. Michael McGreevy, Masyn Winn and JJ Wetherholt all reached finalist status, a reflection of how much value St. Louis got from a young core that kept showing up in the field as the year went on. McGreevy tied for the major league lead in defensive runs saved among pitchers, while Wetherholt led all big league infielders in Outs Above Average despite missing time with an injury.
Wetherholts season has only added to the sense that the Cardinals are building around players who can impact the game in more than one way. He is also a Rookie of the Year finalist, and the clubs offense had its own bright spots with Jordan Walker and Alec Burleson each topping 100 RBIs and putting themselves in the mix for Silver Slugger recognition. Even without a Gold Glove winner to show for it, St. Louis has a strong argument that its young talent is already shaping the team on both sides of the ball. [Read more 🡒]