Inside The Cardinals

Cardinals Lose 26-Year-Old Southpaw To Division-Rival Pirates

Will this well-traveled minor-leaguer ever break through?
Jackson Roberts|
Mar 17, 2016; Bradenton, FL, USA; A view of the Pittsburgh Pirates logo during the game between the Pirates and the New York Yankees at McKechnie Field. The Yankees defeat the Pirates 7-2. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images
Mar 17, 2016; Bradenton, FL, USA; A view of the Pittsburgh Pirates logo during the game between the Pirates and the New York Yankees at McKechnie Field. The Yankees defeat the Pirates 7-2. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

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St. Louis CardinalsPittsburgh Pirates

Minor-league free-agent signings can fly under the radar during the offseason, but one never knows when these deals might prove consequential.

The St. Louis Cardinals let Oddanier Mosqueda, one of their most-used Triple-A relievers, walk at the end of the season, which wasn't a huge surprise, given the fact that he came to St. Louis as a free agent in the offseason. But Mosqueda then quickly signed with a division rival.

According to the official transaction log on his roster page, Mosqueda signed a minor-league deal with the Pittsburgh Pirates on Nov. 14. It will be the lefty's 10th season in affiliated ball, after originally signing as an amateur free agent with the Boston Red Sox in 2015.

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What Oddanier Mosqueda brings to Pirates

Oddanier Mosqueda
Feb 28, 2023; Jupiter, Florida, USA; Boston Red Sox pitcher Oddanier Mosqueda (95) pitches in the fourth inning against the Miami Marlins at Roger Dean Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jim Rassol-Imagn Images | Jim Rassol-Imagn Images

It's not as though the Pirates are expecting Mosqueda to walk in on day one and become a reliable major league setup man. He's got 465 minor-league innings under his belt and his 4.28 career ERA indicates that he's far from a finished product.

However, the 26-year-old has always piled up strikeouts (566 of them, to be precise), and if he can limit his walks, his .216 batting average allowed will play at any level.

Working from a funky sidewinding delivery, Mosqueda has the potential to bring a change of pace to any bullpen he joins, but without major league experience, the Cardinals were well within their rights to let him test minor-league free agency without guaranteeing him anything more than the Triple-A opportunities he got this year.

Pittsburgh and St. Louis are both in a rebuilding state, so if Mosqueda makes the biggest improvement imaginable, it's not as if shutting the Cardinals down in a game this year is likely to haunt St. Louis in the long run.

However, it's interesting to document these moves that seem minor now, because baseball history is littered with important relief pitchers who switched teams back when no one outside of the die-hard prospect followers knew who they were.

More MLB: Cardinals Star Tabbed No. 9 Trade Candidate In MLB By Insider

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Jackson Roberts
JACKSON ROBERTS

Jackson Roberts is a former Division III All-Region DH who now writes and talks about sports for a living. A Bay Area native and a graduate of Swarthmore College and the Newhouse School at Syracuse University, Jackson makes his home in North Jersey. He grew up rooting for the Red Sox, Patriots, and Warriors, and he recently added the Devils to his sports fandom mosaic. For all business/marketing inquiries regarding St. Louis Cardinals On SI, please reach out to Scott Neville: scott@wtfsports.org

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