The Cardinals announced Friday that they’ve signed lefty Andrew Suarez to a minor league contract and invited him to Spring Training. He’ll provide some left-handed depth and a potential bullpen option after spending the past two seasons pitching in the Korea Baseball Organization (2021) and Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball (2022).
A second-round pick by the Giants back in 2015, Suarez pitched parts of three big league seasons in San Francisco, impressing with a solid 4.49 ERA in 160 1/3 frames as a rookie in 2018 before regressing to a 5.79 ERA in 32 2/3 innings during his sophomore season. Suarez tossed just 9 2/3 innings during the shortened 2020 campaign, bringing his career ERA to 4.66 in 202 2/3 innings. He’s fanned a below-average 17.8% of his MLB opponents but also posted strong 7.8% walk and 49.8% ground-ball rates as a big leaguer.
Suarez, 30, was excellent with the KBO’s LG Twins back in 2021, pitching 115 1/3 innings of 2.18 ERA ball with a 26.6% strikeout rate, 8.7% walk rate and 57.1% grounder rate. That landed him a deal with NPB’s Yakult Swallows for the 2022 season, which he surely hoped to use as a stepping stone for either a raise on a second season in NPB or a return directly to the big leagues. Unfortunately, things didn’t pan out that way; Suarez spent more time with Yakult’s minor league club than he did their top team, and he was roughed up for a 6.23 ERA in 21 2/3 frames while pitching with the Swallows’ top-level club.
It’s not clear whether the Cardinals view Suarez as a starter or reliever, though he’d have a better path to their roster if he were to head to the bullpen for the upcoming season. He’s worked primarily as a starting pitcher in his career, but the Cardinals have Jordan Montgomery, Adam Wainwright, Miles Mikolas, Steven Matz and Jack Flaherty penciled into the rotation now, with several depth options behind them (e.g. Dakota Hudson, Jake Woodford, Matthew Liberatore, top prospect Gordon Graceffo). In the bullpen, however, he could compete with Genesis Cabrera, Zack Thompson, Packy Naughton and JoJo Romero.
FOREVER
GIANT
That’s not going you to fill their SP needs. They should go get Eduardo Rodriguez from the Tigers in some type of package for Gorman. If I keep saying it enough maybe the Cards and Tigers will get annoyed and just do it to shut me up 😉
The Cardinals have all the so so back of the rotation pitchers they need. They will be trading for top of the rotation pitching when they do trade. This one here is just bullpen depth.
You’ll come knocking at the trade deadline. It’ll cost you more then 😉
The Cardinals have at least 7 starters as good. I don’t see them looking for another this season. The Cardinals need quality starters. They already have quantity.
You may as well add Jordan Walker for javy Baez. Gives us all your negative value pricey guys nobody would dare take off your hands. Maybe we can grab miggy to add a hall of famer to the lineup to replace pujols. He may use some cardinal magic to roll back time.
In all seriousness I think you would have to give us a prospect just to take him off your hands. And you wouldn’t get Gorman. If the tigers added a good prospect and paid some salary I don’t see them getting anything other then a low tier lottery prospect. Try again with skubal or manning and mize and we’re a little closer to something
Or Jobe and madden added to E.rod for Gorman and I might bite.
I do apologize though for the sarcastic reply as I read it again and see you did say in a some sort of package.
No worries. I’m just dreaming on who I’d like to see them focus on picking up from other teams and love a lot of the Cards young players (Gorman, Burleson, Winn, Yepez, Walker). Gorman seems to have been displaced a bit with his defensive limitations and all their other options popping up last year (I.e. Donovan at 2B). In the right package I would think they would consider trading him because you have so many options at positions ge might play (Yepez at DH, Donovan at 2B, Burleson and Walker for OF). Gorman’s stock is not as high this year as last year. I could see the Tigers considering a package with Manning, but not Skubal or Mize. I’d be pissed if they traded Skubal. Sone articles say the Cards want a power bullpen arm as well and we have Lange who is young, controllable and fits the bill…but the Tigers already shipped out half their bullpen in the last 6 months so probably a no go on him. Madden and Jobe I would say are probably off limits too, unless it was for a huge return and the Cards are good at developing their own pitching anyway. This season will be another long one for us Tigers fans so we have to dream.on something other than a world series!
You must have a modified definition of good. 2 or 3 useful starters, tops.
When is the last time we traded for “top of the rotation pitching”?
It’s been a very long time since St. Louis traded for a top pitcher. Mulder and Lackey are the closest two I can remember. That’s a stretch. I do see a backlog of league ready position layers and only one glaring need on the roster. This could be the year it happens.
Oh bro, like never…. Woody Williams is as close to top of the rotation they ever traded for, him, Mark Mulder, and John Lackey but they were all true 2-3 rather than an ace, and how many Sandy Alcantaras and Zac Gallens have they traded away? Hmmmm drat
Woody Williams was no Ace when Cardinals traded for him. He was 34 years old with a history of Era over 4 with his best being 3.64. The Cards traded away a fading Lankford and cash for Woody, and suddenly he flipped the switch. He did well batting during his time in the Lou as well. The Mulder deal was a wreck. He actually did ok one year despite not being able to locate his pitches due to the injury. But besides his fantastic OBP, Barton didn’t really pan out and Haren was truly unappreciated. The Lackey deal was the steal of the world. His contract was dirt cheap due to stipulation because he had missed time due to injury. Then Lackey pitched fantastically for the birds, eating innings at ERA less than 3 and no injuries. Then Allen Craig was the main guy going to Boston and I guess he left his podiatrist behind. I think the Cards got someone good from Lackeys comp pick as well, Carlson?
I’d say Todd stottlemyer and Pat Hentgen were the 2 guys that were at one time considered aces near when the Cardinals traded for them. Todd seemed to be a horse at least.
Two. One Sandy and one Zac
Yes it turned out a very bad deal and sure we can talk about it every week if you like; but lets not pretend its a regular occurance.
John Tudor from Toronto
And they traded away a durable starter for Mulder, in Dan Haren.
They got him from Pittsburgh. They got Chris Carpenter from Toronto, years later.
IF they make a trade.
They will have to make a trade at some point. There’s simply no room in the organization for all the outfield/dh players they have. I really hope they package two or more to get a front end starter. If none are available then a good shortstop so Edman can move back to second. Gorman is a dh and Donovan needs to move around the field giving days off.
I wouldn’t trade Gorman straight up for Rodriguez. If I’m trading Gorman, it’s for Bieber. Rodriguez wouldn’t even be the 5th best starter for the Cardinal’s.
We are good we don’t need Eduardo Rodriguez. If we trade for a starting pitcher should be for a top starting pitcher like Bieber or Max Fried. However, I don’t see any of them getting traded. By the way, Cardinals Andrew Chafin is still available he is a free agent.
Obviously Chafin has yet to get realistic on his length of contract and/or his asking price or he would have been signed. Same for the rest of the unsigned guys.
Or they can just mute you
There seems to be a plethora of “Suarez” who are pitchers. I need an Excel spreadsheet to keep them all straight.
any Suarez is a good pickup
I was thinking so too you ignorant son of a
This sets up the dudbirds for world series glory. Way to go Mo!
Strange that he was good in the KBO but bad in the NPB.
Cards have had surprisingly good luck signing Pacific Rim players in recent years, including Mikolas, Kim and Oh (let’s not mention Drew Verhagen). I imagine their scouts over there liked what they saw from Suarez in the KBO and figured he’s worth a flier. No harm, no foul.
i hate so much that Jack Flaherty was listed last in the Cards SP list. he’s having a rough set of seasons over there. bad juju. trade or release him. let him come home!
Flaherty is a free agent after this season. I don’t see him coming back no matter what happens this year. I wish him luck this year and the next.
Minor Roster filler that is where he is at — cheap to find out if there is something they can tinker with and show promise otherwise fills some innings low risk
He’ll love it in Memphis. The BBQ is great.
I’ve always been a big Suarez fan. I’m glad he got to establish himself in Asia and I hope he does well as a Cardinal.
No risk shot. Suarez was solid as a rookie with SF and lights out in the KBO. If he finds any of that while he’s in Memphis, it’d be a huge win for the Cards even if he’s just a lefty out the pen
Another huge move by the Cardinals front office to inch them closer to the Mets, Giants, Phillies, Dodgers and Braves. Way to go Mo!!!!! One more small minor move and you might just get payroll back to last years level!!!!
An ace really would do wonders for the longevity of elite contention in the playoffs. An ace would play multiple games in a best of 3 or 4 series. Not many available though without overspending in this market. With Ballys about to go through bankruptcy and much money on the Cardinals behalf in question, I don’t see them being aggressive at all until the trade deadline if a T.V. Market has been secured.