With a major free agent signing that answers a few of the Cardinals’ looming questions this winter, the biggest of which was who their everyday catcher would be in 2023, the club must turn a prudent eye to the horizon and the rising unknown that’s about to be glaring.
Who exactly will Willson Contreras catch in 2024?
The Cardinals, treading cautiously because they’ve been blistered before by such confidence, believe they have at least six starters ready to be a part of their rotation for the coming season. Beneath the surface of such depth is the fact that only one of those six, lefty Steven Matz, is under contract beyond 2023. Four of the six can be free agents at season’s end. Without an addition this winter or an extension this spring, the Cardinals could find themselves shopping for multiple starters at a time when aces are rare and salaries are soaring.
