The World Series matchup between the Tampa Bay Rays and the Milwaukee Brewers is set to open Friday, October 23rd, and it gives the St. Louis Cardinals a useful window into a handful of possible free-agent fits for next season.
St. Louis is not expected to dive in heavily on the open market.
The bigger plan is still to build from within. But that doesn’t mean the Cardinals can’t shop for help around the edges, adding depth pieces and plugging a few holes on a roster that is still unproven.
There are a few players in this series who could make sense if the market lines up right.
One of the more interesting names is right-hander Nick Martinez. He’s been around the block, and then some.
Drafted by the Texas Rangers in the eighteenth round of the 2011 MLB Draft, Martinez has also pitched for four MLB teams and spent three years in Japan. At 35, he just turned in one of the strongest seasons of his career with Tampa.
Martinez posted a 3.10 ERA, a 3.96 FIP, and 2.9 fWAR in 31 starts, covering 180 innings. That was a real step forward from his first six major league seasons, when he logged a 4.31 ERA, a 4.95 FIP, a 1.389 WHIP, and 6.2 strikeouts per nine innings across the 2014-2017 and 2022-2023 stretches.
Over the last three years, though, he’s settled into a much better run: a 3.56 ERA, 3.87 FIP, 1.113 WHIP, and 6.3 K/9. He’s also done a much better job cutting down walks and home runs since returning to the majors five years ago, and his 1.3 BB/9 rate led the majors this season.
That said, Martinez doesn’t really solve the Cardinals’ biggest issue. St.
Louis wants more strikeouts from its rotation, and that’s not his game. That’s the main hesitation here.
Spotrac pegs him for a two-year, $43MM deal, which feels steep for the Cardinals. If the market cools, though, a one-year deal with an option could put him back in play.
Another name to watch is reliever Antonio Senzatela, though there’s a wrinkle there. He has a club option for next year worth $14MM, and there is no buyout if the Brewers turn it down. Even after a strong year in Milwaukee, that’s a hefty number for a reliever, especially for a team that has a history of being careful with expensive players.
Senzatela finished 2026 with a 4.05 ERA and a 3.67 FIP over 73.1 innings. His strikeout rate jumped to 19.3%, and his walk rate inched up to 8.4%.
His numbers did fall off after leaving Colorado and settling in with the Brewers. Still, he could be a smart Cardinals target if he reaches the market.
He likely wouldn’t cost much, and if he gets off to a solid start, he could even turn into a deadline trade chip for a depth prospect or two.
Then there’s utility man Jorge Mateo, who would not qualify as a flashy signing. But it would be the kind of move that quietly adds some structure to the roster. He’d be similar in some ways to the Cardinals’ signing of Ramon Urias last year: experienced, versatile, and useful in a clubhouse that has plenty of younger players.
Mateo played for both the Atlanta Braves and Tampa Bay Rays this past season, finishing with a .203/.245/.314 line, five home runs, and 19 stolen bases. He was better with Atlanta than he was with Tampa Bay, though he was still a negative offensive player, even with an 82 OPS+ for the Braves. The Rays were able to get more out of his speed, giving him the green light for nine steals in just 32 games.
If St. Louis added him, Mateo wouldn’t be coming in to reshape anything.
He’d more likely be the 26th man, giving the Cardinals a veteran option who can move around the diamond and fill in at multiple spots. He could spell Masyn Winn, JJ Wetherholt, and whoever ends up at third base next year.
That’s not glamorous, but it has value.
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Victor Scott II Suddenly Has A Real Cardinals Roster Problem
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Now the problem is bigger than one disappointing season. With Josiah Ragsdale and Tai Peete also in the mix for 2027, the Cardinals are starting to stockpile more young outfield options than there are obvious jobs available, which puts Scott in an uncomfortable spot. The organization still has to decide whether to keep betting on his tools or treat him as one more name caught in a crowded competition. [Read more 🡒]