2 Cardinals offseason decisions that will pay off, and 1 that will backfire

Cardinals offseason decision that will backfire: No significant pitching upgrades

If there is one area with some questions for the Cardinals, it’s the pitching staff. The bullpen was shaky last year. The starting pitchers had trouble staying off the IL. They do now have Jordan Montgomery for a full season. The team seems to have hopes that Jack Flaherty can stay healthy and productive. The front office’s fingers have remained crossed that last winter’s free agent signing of Steven Matz doesn’t turn into a complete bust.

There is no shortage of arms on the staff. In fact, the Cardinals could safely consider moving a pretty good arm plus a prospect for an even surer starting pitcher. They never did. It’s something they may regret.

The Redbirds have some good arms in their bullpen, none may be more on the rise than Ryan Helsley. As promising of a pitcher as he is for the coming year, the Cardinals are relying on a mix of inexperienced guys and slumpers from last season.

Can Jordan Hicks turn things around? How are they going to handle the lack of lefties in the bullpen? Genesis Cabrera was not someone they could trust last season. Could Matthew Liberatore spend a season pitching in relief in this role?

The Cardinals have a ton of bullpen arms with minor-league options. Maybe all they need to do is sign Andrew Chafin to bolster it a little further. Even Matt Moore might be good enough to at least bring a veteran presence in there.

St. Louis will be okay. It just seems like not doing anything at all will backfire.