Important Dates For Cardinals Fans To Keep In Mind

The St. Louis Cardinals are getting a head start on the offseason right now, like most of Major League Baseball at this point.

There are just four teams still in action: the Toronto Blue Jays, Seattle Mariners, Los Angeles Dodgers, and the Milwaukee Brewers. The rest of the league -- including the Cardinals -- are starting to prepare for the 2026 season.

With that being said, here are key dates for Cardinals fans to keep in mind for the offseason.

Five Days After the World Series: Option deadline
Nov. 21: Non-tender deadline
Dec. 8-11: Winter Meetings
Dec. 9: MLB Draft lottery
Dec. 10: MLB Rule 5 Draft
Mid-February: Cardinals report to Spring Training
Late February: Cardinals begin Spring Training games
March 26th: Cardinals Opening Day

There's a lot to watch for Cardinals fans

Sep 5, 2023; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; A detailed view of the hat and glove of St. Louis Cardinals second baseman Nolan Gorman (not pictured) before a game against the Atlanta Braves at Truist Park. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

The Cardinals don't really have to worry about the option deadline much, but it's still important to monitor what's going on around the league. Right now, the Cardinals have just one player scheduled to head to free agency and that's Miles Mikolas, and he is an unrestricted free agent. By Nov. 21st, teams have to decide whether they are going to tender contracts to their arbitration-eligible players on 40-man rosters. The Winter Meetings are viewed as the unofficial start to free agency, although moves will get done beforehand. The Winter Meetings are a time when all of the big decision-makers in baseball are all together in one place, including players and agents. That's why you see plenty of trades and free agent deals get done during that time.

From then on, most of the noise around the league will have to do with transactions around the league. That's typically free agency or the trade market, but also the Rule 5 Draft as well. Then, things will start to slow down ahead of Spring Training afterward. The Cardinals haven't announced dates for 2026 Spring Training yet, but last year, pitchers and catchers reported by Feb. 12th, and the Spring Training games began on Feb. 22nd.

There's a bit of a lull period right now for St. Louis with the playoffs ongoing, but that will change quickly.

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