For the past few years it has seemed the St. Louis Cardinals roster was magical. If someone went down, another player from the minor leagues was able to fill in and do the job admirably. But this season things have not been so easy. Not only have the Cardinals not been able to score runs as easily as before, but there once daunting pitching staff is becoming surprisingly thin. With Jaime Garcia out for the season and Michael Wacha out for the foreseeable future, they have already turned to 2013 first round draft choice Marco Gonzalez, who has struggled mightily in his first three starts. Because of these struggles and injuries, the Cardinals need a backup plan, and that plan appears to be working out a trade for Jake Peavy.
As ESPNs Jayson Stark tweeted, the Cardinals had scouts to see Peavy pitch and a deal could happen rather quickly.
This move would be a shift from the usual Cardinal mold of filling needs with their own players.
In Peavy the Cardinals would be adding a player who is off to one of the worst statistical years of his career. Through his first 18 starts, Peavy has gone 1-7 with a 4.64 ERA. He has also seen his walk rate rise to 3.4 walks per nine innings pitched (his worst rate in over ten years).
But numbers aside, in adding Peavy the Cardinals would be adding an innings eater and veteran presence with post-season and World Series experience. As a former Cy Young award winner, and a pitcher with a 3.57 career ERA he is a pitcher who could provide leadership and relief for pitchers like Gonzalez and Carlos Martinez.
Teams are bunched at the top of the NL Central.
Currently, the Cardinals are not only trying to catch the Milwaukee Brewers, but they are working each day to fight off the charging Cincinnati Reds and Pittsburgh Pirates. While adding a struggling pitcher like Jake Peavy may be against their traditional moves and could be viewed as desperation, adding his leadership to the rotation may prove to be exactly what they need going forward.
Statistics Provided by Baseball Reference
Photo Credit: Christopher Evans Boston Herald
