5 starting pitchers Cardinals could target in free agency

This story was excerpted from Will Leitch's Cardinals Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

The Cardinals were not heavy spenders last offseason, and for good reason: It was not the year to start bringing in a bunch of expensive free agents. But one signing St. Louis did make could turn out to be one of its smartest in a long time.

When the Cardinals signed Dustin May to a one-year, $12.5 million deal last December, their goals for the signing were two-fold. First, they hoped May would help stabilize an uncertain and unproven rotation. But perhaps more importantly, the club hoped that a once-heralded pitcher could shake off years of injury woes to rebuild his value ahead of the Trade Deadline.

Both goals were accomplished. May had a 4.38 ERA in 21 starts for the Cardinals, a mark impressive enough that the team was able to deal him, along with reliever JoJo Romero, to the Brewers for outfielders Alexander Frias (Cardinals’ No. 5 prospect) and Josiah Ragsdale (No. 11). May wasn’t great for the Brewers (5.65 ERA) after the trade, but he might still help Milwaukee win a World Series. For the Cardinals, the club got two players who look like they will be big parts of the organization moving forward. The May signing was an unqualified success.

So, it makes sense for the Cardinals to try the same strategy again. The rotation looks a little more robust heading into 2027 than it did a year ago, but the team could still use a veteran arm, if not for the same reasons as last season. Maybe this pitcher becomes a mainstay who helps the team into October, or maybe he helps bring in more prospects at the Deadline.

Here’s a look at five potential targets:

LHP Kris Bubic

Bubic was an All-Star in 2025, and for good reason: He had a 2.48 ERA in 18 starts in the first half. But a left rotator cuff strain early in the second half sidelined him for the rest of 2025, and left elbow soreness kept him out for four months this season. Bubic has spent time on the 60-day injured list in each of the past four years and has never thrown more than 130 innings in a season.

The Dodgers acquired Bubic at this year’s Deadline, and when he returned from the IL in September, he only pitched in short stints out of the bullpen. He gave up a run in both of his postseason appearances. When Bubic is healthy, he’s great. But the left-hander needs to prove he can stay healthy. That sounds a lot like May a year ago.

LHP Foster Griffin

The Nationals certainly got everything they could have wanted out of Griffin, whom they signed for $5.5 million after he spent the previous three seasons pitching in Japan. Griffin only got a brief taste of the Majors before heading overseas, but in his return stateside, he gave the Nats 22 starts with a 3.06 ERA to earn an All-Star nod.

It was just a one-year deal, though, so the Nationals traded him to the Guardians for four prospects. Griffin struggled after the trade (5.19 ERA in nine starts) but proved helpful in the team’s postseason run. He’s basically the opposite of Bubic, with a higher floor but with a lower ceiling. That has a lot of value, though, and Griffin would love to prove he can be durable two seasons in a row.

RHP Tyler Mahle

Mahle has been a journeyman over his 10-year career, and the Braves, desperate to help an injury-depleted rotation, took a chance on him at the Deadline after he put up a 5.13 ERA in 18 starts for the Giants. But when he arrived, he turned into an ace out of nowhere, putting up a 1.99 ERA in nine starts, then was magnificent in two postseason outings.

It would be strange if Mahle just turned into that guy out of nowhere -- the key was the emergence of his splitter, which Braves coaches encouraged him to throw more -- but if a team believes those changes are permanent, the 32-year-old could get a longer deal than the Cardinals are interested in providing. On the other hand, if he has to prove it one more year, St. Louis would be a great place to try.

RHP Jack Flaherty

Flaherty’s best years were in St. Louis, including 2019, when he finished fourth in NL Cy Young Award voting. But other than a terrific first half in Detroit in 2024 (which preceded a Deadline deal to the World Series-champion Dodgers), he has never quite been the same since leaving.

So perhaps a reunion would make some sense for both parties. Flaherty is no longer the electric young phenom he was seven years ago, but he still has good stuff, with a 26% strikeout rate in 88 1/3 innings in 2026. Flaherty didn’t pitch much this year because he went on the IL in July with right forearm flexor inflammation and didn’t return until the season’s final day. He just turned 31, which is relatively young, and only slightly older than May was when he signed his deal with St. Louis last year. He’s the most like May, really, of anyone on this list. Except for, well …

RHP Dustin May

Up for another go-around? May improved his value with what he did for the Cardinals, as evidenced by how much they got for him in their trade. But he struggled after moving to Milwaukee -- pending the World Series -- and it’s clear he’s not the No. 3 postseason starter the Brewers were hoping for.

May still has a lively fastball and is relatively young compared to the market, as he won’t turn 30 until next September. You could argue that he still has a bit more to prove, and perhaps a return to St. Louis could help both parties once again.