Cardinals, Jared Shuster Signing Explained: Why Lefty Is Sneaky Bargain

Chaim Bloom has been a breath of fresh air for the St. Louis Cardinals' front office.

Now, the Cardinals haven't gone out and handed out any nine-figure deals or anything of that nature, but St. Louis has been aggressive this offseason so far. Bloom and the team as a whole have been clear that their goals are to find new homes for some of the veterans on the roster, but that doesn't mean a complete teardown. The Cardinals have already traded Sonny Gray and agreed to also send Willson Contreras to the Boston Red Sox. There's more to come, but the Cardinals have also added pieces as well.

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The Cardinals have said that they are going to be competitive and went out and signed veteran starting pitcher Dustin May and reportedly made another move on Monday. MLB Network's Jon Morosi reported that the club is in agreement with veteran hurler Jared Shuster on a minor league pact with an invite to Spring Training.

The Cardinals made yet another move

May 8, 2025; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; Chicago White Sox relief pitcher Jared Shuster (51) pitches against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images | Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images

"Source: LHP Jared Shuster has agreed to a minor league contract with the Cardinals that includes an invitation to MLB Spring Training," Morosi wrote. "With the Cardinals listening to trade offers for multiple veterans, Shuster has a good chance to make the Opening Day roster."

Shuster is a left-handed hurler who is just 27 years old and has 62 games of big league experience under his belt -- including 17 starts. In 2025, he made 12 appearances in the majors for the Chicago White Sox -- including two starts -- and had an 8.04 ERA in 15 2/3 innings pitched.

That sounds very bad, but he actually allowed one or fewer earned runs in eight of his 12 appearances. He allowed two or fewer runs in 10 of his 12 outings. His FIP -- which attempts to remove defense from the equation -- actually was 2.94 in 2025, which shows that he had some really bad luck behind him defensively in Chicago. His advanced metrics are better than you'd think as well.

The reported signing is interesting. You can't really go wrong with a minor league. If he proves to be a left-handed bullpen option for the club that could go a long way for the organization at a low price. Plus, JoJo Romero has been the subject of trade rumors for months at this point. Maybe this could be a sign of a deal to come.

More MLB: Willson Contreras Trade Brings Cardinals Two Key Prospects to Know