Former St. Louis Cardinals pitcher retires from baseball

The St. Louis Cardinals need pitching help. It will not come in the form of J.A. Happ, who helped steady the ship last season.

To be clear, Happ was a free agent and hadn’t received many calls since spring training. He was not in the cards to join St. Louis or any other MLB roster as far as we know.

That being said, the Cardinals desperately need pitching help, especially with injuries to Steven Matz and Jack Flaherty holding them back. A call to Happ would’ve made some difference, had it occurred earlier this season.

Cardinals: JA Happ reunion no longer an option

Now, it’s too late. Happ has opted to retire from baseball, per the man himself in an appearance on the Heart Strong Podcast with Jessica Lindberg.

"“It got to the point where it was Opening Day, and I turned the first game on, and I talked to my wife, Morgan, and I said ’What are you feeling?’ She just kind of looked at me and said, ’A little anxiety.’ I wanted to turn it on to see what I felt, too, and I didn’t maybe feel what I needed to feel in order to think I wanted to keep doing this. I felt like that was a sign, like ’OK, it’s time to go.’ Even though I had put the work in to be ready if the right situation came, I felt like it was time to move on and be a dad and dive into the kids.”"

Happ is ready for life after baseball, despite his last season in St. Louis. The then-38-year-old had a 5-2 record with an ERA of 4.00. He and Jon Lester brought stability to a Cardinals rotation which needed it after the trade deadline.