Cardinals Could Try To Sign Frontline Starter Reportedly Entering Free Agency

St. Louis could use the international ace

Scott Neville | Oct 29, 2023

Cardinals Could Try To Sign Frontline Starter Reportedly Entering Free Agency /

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St. Louis Cardinals

The St. Louis Cardinals are preparing to retool their starting rotation this winter after the pitching staff held back what was an otherwise successful roster.

St. Louis will look to add at least three new starters and will have to exhaust all options to find the right additions. Given the Cardinals' financial restraints, it's unlikely that they acquire all three via high-end free-agent contracts.

To find value, St. Louis likely will either have to find a bargain starter in free agency or explore the trade market to pair with a big signing or two. The former just became a little more realistic with the latest reported addition to the free-agent pitching pool.

"News from Japan: Right-handed pitcher Naoyuki Uwasawa of the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters announced today his plans to move to Major League Baseball for the 2024 season via the posting process," MLB Network's Jon Morosi reported Saturday.

Uwasawa posted a 2.96 ERA with a 124-to-41 strikeout-to-walk ratio and 1.14 WHIP in 170 innings across 24 starts this season. The 29-year-old has a career 3.19 ERA over nine seasons and appears to be one of the more consistent pitchers in the Nippon Professional Baseball League.

The right-hander does not come without some concerns, as many do not know whether his low-90s fastball will play at the MLB level.

Uwasawa likely will be on the Cardinals' radar this winter but certainly will not be atop their wish list.

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Published Oct 29, 2023

SCOTT NEVILLE

Scott Neville covers the St. Louis Cardinals for FanNation's "Inside The Cardinals" on Sports Illustrated. Before starting "Inside The Cardinals", Neville attended Merrimack College, where he earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Communication and Media with a minor in Marketing. Neville spent all four years with Merrimack's radio station WMCK, where he grew as a radio/podcast host and producer. His propensity for being in front of a microphone eventually expanded to film, where he produced multiple short films alongside his then-roommate and current co-worker Stephen Mottram. On a journey that began as a way to receive easy credits via film classes, he received a call from "It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia" star Charlie Day. Day advised him to make a feature-length film, which he completed his senior year. While writing the film, Neville completed an internship for United Way as part of their NFL Partnership Program. Neville ran the blog for a team of interns and hosted an internet show called "United Way's NFL Partnership Series" where he interviewed NFL alumni. After college Neville wrote for SB Nation's "Over The Monster," a Red Sox sister site of the flagship brand. His work would eventually lead him to a job as a content producer with NESN, where he would cover all sports. After developing as a writer with the top regional network in the world, he was given the opportunity to join FanNation and the Sports Illustrated Media Group as the publisher of "Inside The Red Sox." After a few months as the top Major League Baseball site in the program, Neville sought expansion and pitched "Inside The Cardinals," one of the newest additions to FanNation and the Sports Illustrated Media Group. The successful launch and quick rise of "Inside The Cardinals" led to Neville joining the Baseball Essential ownership group, a national baseball site under SIMG. Follow him on Twitter: @ScottNeville46 Email: nevilles@merrimack.edu