It is only spring training, or is it? That is the question many St. Louis Cardinals fans are asking themselves after seeing Opening Day starter Sonny Gray served up one meatball after another in spring training. St. Louis may play in the most winnable of the three divisions in the National League, but the Cardinals are not going to be sniffing the postseason if Gray continues to be so unreliable.
Through his three spring training starts, Gray has surrendered six home runs. This includes a two-run shot off the bat of Miami Marlins first baseman Jonah Bride over the weekend. Gray's offering was a four-seam fastball in the low 90s. While Gray may not be a fireballer, location and movement have to matter for him to have continued success at the big-league level. Otherwise, he will likely be a goner.
Not to say that St. Louis was bad by any means last season, but the Cardinals have seem to hit a rough patch of sorts in their otherwise illustrious history. For the better part of my life, St. Louis has always been varying degrees of postseason-viable. That could still be the case this season, but I feel strongly that this could end up being a pivotal season for them. Will they live up to lofty expectations?
As you can see, Gray has become a cause for concern when it comes to the Cardinals this spring.
Someone please tell me what's going on with Sonny Gray. I don't have the time (or brainpower) to figure out what's causing these issues.
— Thomas Gauvain (@thomasgauvain) March 16, 2025
I won't accept the "it's just spring training" answer. I want real data points. #STLCards https://t.co/KwyeXTZL9R
In the day and age of the power pitcher, being able to locate one's pitches are even more important.
For more news and rumors, check out MLB Insider Robert Murray’s work on The Baseball Insiders podcast, subscribe to The Moonshot, our weekly MLB newsletter, and join the discord to get the inside scoop during the MLB season.
St. Louis Cardinals fans have become concerned about Sonny Gray's stuff
I look at a team like the Cardinals where it could seemingly go either way for them this year. Right now, the team to beat in the NL Central is arguably the Milwaukee Brewers. Then again, the Brew Crew largely overachieved in their first year without Craig Counsell as their skipper. Although Chicago is interesting, the Cubs are unreliable. Cincinnati and Pittsburgh can be fun, but should never be trusted.
So I look at a franchise like the Cardinals that have been well-run historically, or at least up until recently, and wonder if that could be enough to navigate a middling division to a No. 3 seed in the National League. For any and all of that to happen, they have to get high-end performances week in and week out from Gray. He has been a No. 1 at times in his career, but those days could be over with.
Ultimately, I feel we are at a breaking point with this franchise. Chicago finds a nut every once in a while. Milwaukee is in the midst of its best decade as a franchise. Even though I do not trust Cincinnati or Pittsburgh, the talent is there and all it takes is some intrinsic belief and a bit of luck to overcome all the losing. St. Louis has been on top recently, but the end product feels so decadent.
St. Louis may be able to navigate a tough spring from Gray, but he needs to be part of the equation.