3 former Cardinals thriving with new teams who would help in St. Louis

It hasn't quite been the disaster of the 2023 season for the St. Louis Cardinals to begin the 2024 campaign, but it also hasn't been good either. After a loss on Wednesday to the Tigers, Oli Marmol's club fell to 14-17 on the season, sitting 5.5 games back already in the NL Central and obviously three games below .500.

Many of the same issues from a year ago have persisted while new ones have been more frustrating. Marmol's decision-making remains heavily and deservedly scrutinized, the pitching staff is shallow, and more pressingly the offense has been a huge issue for this club.

Coming off of a 2023 trade deadline and offseason where the Cardinals roster was reshaped, it's hard to think that they didn't make some missteps along the way. Specifically, there are three former Cardinals players who are currently thriving with their new teams that would be highly beneficial to still have on the field in St. Louis.

3. Buddy Kennedy would be tremendous infield depth for the Cardinals

You're probably thinking something along the lines of "I don't remember anyone named Buddy Kennedy on the Cardinals roster." And that's a fair assessment. He actually never suited up for St. Louis after the club claimed him off of waivers in late October. However, he was then the player who was designated for assignment following the signing of veteran Brandon Crawford.

Therein lies the biggest reason why the Cards have to be questioning that decision to move on from Kennedy in favor of the longtime Giant, Crawford. The veteran shortstop hasn't seen much action, playing in only seven games with Masyn Winn getting the majority of the starts at shortstop. But when Crawford has been in the game, it's been a disaster as he's slashing just .105/.190/.105 on the season with nine strikeouts in 19 at-bats.

Kennedy, on the other hand, signed with the Detroit Tigers after being DFA'd. And after Gio Urshela was put on the IL, the 25-year-old utility man was put into action and, though he's not been a game-changer, he's been better than Crawford, slashing .200/.308/.500 over six games to this point.

With how the offense has struggled, even in a minimal backup role, Kennedy's defensive versatility along with being a better bat than Crawford so far this year makes it seem like the Cardinals made the wrong decision in signing the veteran instead of just retaining Kennedy after landing him on waivers.

2. Jordan Hicks is an albatross mistake made by the Cardinals

Pitching was the primary focus for the Cardinals offseason and for good reason. At last season's trade deadline, John Mozeliak started a complete teardown of the pitching staff amid a doomed 2023 campaign by trading away pending free agents of the highest value. One such player that was dealt was then-flamethrowing reliever Jordan Hicks.

Hicks had long been an enticing projection if the plan to stretch him out into a starter ever materialized. Instead, that never happened and he was a hot-and-cold commodity out of the Cards bullpen routinely. So he was traded to the Blue Jays at the deadline where he continued that theme before signing with the Giants this offseason.

But here's the thing: When the Giants inked him to that deal in free agency, it was with the intention of finally moving him to be a starter. And thus far, it's been a stellar gamble for San Francisco. Over six starts, Hicks has averaged just under 6.0 innings per outing but, more pressingly, has posted a minuscule 1.59 ERA with an even more impressive 0.91 WHIP.

While the Cardinals moves to address pitching have gone well -- most notably Sonny Gray and Lance Lynn, though Kyle Gibson has been solid too -- the pitching depth in St. Louis is lacking. And there's no denying that having another younger ace like Hicks on the roster would increase the optimism of the rotation long term.

1. Tyler O'Neill is mashing with Boston while the Cardinals offense falters

Make no mistake, it was a tumultuous relationship between Tyler O'Neill and the Cardinals, particularly with manager Oli Marmol in the 2023 season. Throw in the rampant injuries that the talented outfielder dealt with throughout his tenure along with the outfield depth in the organization, and it stood to reason why St. Louis was willing to part with O'Neill in an offseason trade for pitchers Nick Robertson and Victor Santos.

At the same time, the Cardinals offense has been lackluster at best to start the 2024 season. While that's been happening, though, O'Neill has been one of the breakout stars in MLB for the Boston Red Sox. Yes, he had a brief 7-day IL stint after an outfield collision led to a concussion. But outside of that, he's been a powerhouse.

Entering Wednesday's action, the 28-year-old outfielder was putting up ridiculous numbers with a .320/.433/.693 slash line along with nine home runs, 20 runs scored and 12 RBI for the season. O'Neill's batting average, OBP, slugging percentage and home run total would all be tops for the Cardinals this season among players who have played at least 10 games this season.

O'Neill's theoretical value could potentially diminish for the Cardinals once Tommy Edman and Dylan Carlson return. Right now, though, having that hot bat in the lineup would give this team a shot in the arm they're desperately missing at the plate to begin the year.