St. Louis Cardinals Need To Add A Bat This Offseason

By Drew Jenkins @DrewJenkins77 on October 27, 2014

The St. Louis Cardinals had a successful season, ultimately reaching the NLCS and coming close to yet another World Series berth. Still, with their great pitching and defense, you had to wonder if the Cardinals could have done even more.

The offense let the Cardinals down over the course of the season, as the club was tied for just 23rd in baseball in runs scored with 619. The Cardinals also scored just 3.78 runs per game in the playoffs, which was lower than the regular season MLB average of 4.07. Simply put, the Cardinals’ offense held them back the entire year, and while they still had a successful season, they could have been so much more if their offense had been even league average.

This need may not have seemed as dire as their amount of runs scored shows given the Cardinals’ young talent. After all, guys like Kolten Wong, Matt Adams, Oscar Taveras and Randal Grichuk seemed poised to improve in 2015 with some added experience. But with the tragic passing of Taveras, the Cardinals now find themselves without someone they thought could be among the game’s best young hitters. Thus, their need for a bat has been exacerbated, and the Cardinals need to add to their lineup this offseason.

The easiest way for the Cardinals to upgrade will be in their outfield. Matt Holliday and Jon Jay figure to lock down left field and center field, but the picture in right field is less clear. Grichuk could be given the job, but handing a starting position to a player with 47 games of big league experience and at times an iffy plate approach is not a good idea. Grichuk would be better off spending time at all three outfield spots in a backup role.

Also, the Cardinals can add a right-handed bat to complement Matt Adams at first base. Adams hit a solid .288/.321/.457 in 2014 but slashed just .190/.231/.298 against left-handed pitchers in 2014. Giving him a platoon mate will limit his exposure against lefties and benefit the Cardinals lineup.

The Cardinals will have multiple avenues to explore adding to their roster this offseason. First, they have a surplus of pitching, and they could easily trade a starter to acquire a bat. Also, Cardinals management has said they expect payroll to steadily rise in the next few years. Some of that will go to rising arbitration costs for their young stars, but it seems like the Cardinals have room to add at least a mid-level free agent on a multi-year deal.

Adding a bat was already a must for the Cardinals this offseason, and the untimely passing of Taveras only makes that a bigger need. Thanks to their pitching and defense, the Cardinals will compete again in 2015, but if they want to give themselves an even greater edge, adding to their lineup will be crucial this offseason.

Drew Jenkins is an MLB writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @DrewJenkins77, “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.