Cardinals sign Matz

*Photo from Jays Journal*

   The starting pitching market has continued to move fast this offseason, with another domino falling as November nears an end. The St.Louis Cardinals and LHP Steven Matz have agreed to a 4 year, $44 million deal, according to Jeff Passan of ESPN. The deal has been confirmed by the Cardinals.

   The Cardinals starting rotation has always been ground ball heavy, and the signing of Matz plays even more into that, as he is also a ground ball pitcher. It also gives the Cardinals a left handed option in the rotation, which is something they had been lacking recently, which led them to acquire lefties Jon Lester and JA Happ at last year's trade deadline.

   How well does Matz fit into the ground ball heavy mold you ask? Well, last season he pitched to a 46.3 ground ball rate in a Toronto Blue Jays uniform, which is slightly below his career average of 48.8 percent, but it was above the MLB average of 45.1 percent. Signing with the Cardinals, he gets introduced to an infield full of gold glove winners and one platinum glove winner, so defense won't be a problem.

   Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak said in a statement that "We’re excited to have Steven join our rotation and bring his experience and talents to our team. Steven has proven himself to be a consistent contributor, and we think that his game will continue to excel here in St. Louis with the backing of our exceptional defense."

   With the Blue Jays last season, his second team in his career, Matz pitched to a 14-7 record with a 3.82 ERA and a 1.33 WHIP, striking out 144 hitters while issuing just 43 walks, throwing 150 2/3 innings while making 29 starts for the Blue Jays, who narrowly missed the playoffs in 2021. It was a strong season for Matz in his first one away from the New York Mets.

   Across 7 seasons in the big leagues, being with the Mets for 6 and the Blue Jays for one, Matz has a lifetime 45-48 record with a 4.24 ERA and a 1.32 WHIP, fanning 696 batters across 730 1/3 innings pitched, starting 163 games and making an additional 5 appearances out of the bullpen in his major league career.

   Because of Matz's breakout season, there was a market for his services this offseason. The Blue Jays did not extend him a qualifying offer but were still in on re-signing him, having offered him a 3 year deal earlier in the winter. The Mets were also interested in bringing him back, and the Boston Red Sox had checked in as well. In the end, it's the Cardinals Matz will be going to.

   As he joins the Cardinals, Matz gives them a pretty strong starting rotation entering the 2022 season. If the Cardinals were to make no more moves, the rotation right now would consist of Matz, Adam Wainwright, Miles Mikolas, Dakota Hudson, and Jack Flaherty, with Jake Woodford likely being the 6th starter in the event of injuries or underperformance.