Cardinals close to bringing back Yadier Molina

The St. Louis Cardinals are close to bringing back veteran catcher Yadier Molina. For real this time!

For months, St. Louis Cardinals fans panicked at the thought of longtime catcher Yadier Molina wearing a different MLB uniform. There were reports that the Cards were close to bringing Molina back and that teams like the Toronto Blue Jays were still in contact with the backstop. Cardinals fans, it appears you can finally take a sigh of relief.

According to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, the Cardinals are close to bringing back Molina on a new deal. MLB insider Jon Heyman reports that the deal is for one-year, worth $9 million.

Yadi coming back to St. Louis

Entering this offseason, the Cardinals declined the option on Molina’s deal, making him a free agent. Molina himself mentioned early in the Hot Stove season that he had received interest from the New York Yankees, Los Angeles Angels, New York Mets and San Diego Padres. But, there was no real traction among those squads, with the only real threat appearing to be the Blue Jays.

Molina’s teammate, Adam Wainwright, got a deal done with the Cardinals hours after reports indicated that the Padres made an offer to the veteran pitcher. Now, it appears Toronto helped give St. Louis the push they needed to re-sign Molina.

This past season, Molina slashed .262/.303/.359 while recording four home runs, 16 RBI, 38 hits and 12 runs scored. Defensively, Molina posted a .985 fielding percentage as a catcher (five errors on 328 defensive chances).

Once a deal is finalized, the Cardinals look to be in great shape heading into the 2021 season. With the returns of Molina and Wainwright, along with the acquisition of former Colorado Rockies third baseman Nolan Arenado, St. Louis could be serious World Series contenders out of the National League. If the past couple of weeks proved anything, it is that the Cardinals are all-in.