Sonny Gray’s next move could put St. Louis back in the conversation.
After being dealt by the Cardinals to the Boston Red Sox last offseason, Gray delivered exactly the kind of season teams dream about from a veteran starter. He went 18-0 with a 2.72 ERA in 29 starts, logging 169 innings, striking out 149 batters and finishing with a 4.3 WAR. Boston reached the postseason, and Gray now appears headed for free agency after expectedly declining his mutual option.
He had even considered retirement before deciding to keep going for at least one more year.
That detail opens the door to a possible Cardinals reunion in 2027. Gray is turning 37, so a long-term deal seems unlikely, but he should still draw plenty of interest. A one-year contract at the high end of the starter market is the kind of arrangement that could make sense for both sides.
Gray has never hidden his appreciation for his time in St. Louis, even though the Cardinals missed the playoffs during his two seasons there.
When he’s healthy, he’s the type of arm who can take the ball deep into games and handle pressure starts. And after a strong step forward in 2026, the Cardinals could still use a proven presence at the top of the rotation.
Chaim Bloom has already said he doesn’t plan to cut corners in the rebuild, but a one-year deal for Gray wouldn’t really qualify as one. St.
Louis could even follow the same general path it took with Dustin May, bringing Gray in with the idea of flipping him at the deadline for more prospects. In the meantime, he’d give a young rotation a veteran voice, and that group ended up being one of the Cardinals’ strengths in 2026.
Of course, Gray is going to have options. He could return to Boston, choose another contender, or decide St.
Louis is the right fit for 2027. The Cardinals still may be a year or two away, but they’re in a better spot now than they were at the end of the 2025 season, and that could matter if Gray is looking for one more run with a familiar team.
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