The Cardinals closed a deal with pitcher Sonny Gray.
The St. Louis Cardinals reached an agreement with pitcher and free agent Sonny Gray, according to ESPN and multiple reports.
Gray, 34, joins a revamped Cardinals rotation that also includes recent free-agent additions Lance Lynn and Kyle Gibson.
Gray is coming off a strong 2023 season with the Minnesota Twins. He finished second in the American League Cy Young Award voting behind the Yankees’ right-hander Gerrit Cole and earned his third career All-Star appearance.
The veteran right-hander made 32 starts, with a record of 8-8 and an ERA of 2.79, striking out 183 batters in 184 innings.
In 11 seasons with the Oakland Athletics, New York Yankees, Cincinnati Reds, and Twins, Gray has a record of 98-85 with an ERA of 3.47.
The Cardinals began the offseason seeking three starting pitchers to bolster a struggling rotation that posted a 5.08 ERA, the fifth-worst in baseball. Gray joins a revamped rotation with returnees Miles Mikolas and Steven Matz, along with Lynn and Gibson. The Cardinals also have young left-handers Matthew Liberatore, Zack Thompson, and Drew Rom, who started games with varying degrees of effectiveness last season.
St. Louis ranked 26th in starting pitcher ERA last season and recognized the need to upgrade its rotation after trading Jack Flaherty and Jordan Montgomery during the season, coupled with Adam Wainwright’s retirement.
The team’s poor pitching contributed to its worst overall season (71-91) since 1990.
The agreement was first reported on Monday by the New York Post.
