ST. LOUIS -- In the first signs of the Cardinals following through on their stated offseason plans of trimming payroll and creating more opportunities for their younger players, the club informed veteran pitchers Lance Lynn, Kyle Gibson and Keynan Middleton that it would be declining their contract options for next season.
President of baseball operations John Mozeliak said on Thursday -- a day after the Dodgers rallied past the Yankees to win the World Series in five games -- that the Cardinals would not be picking up the $12 million option owed to Gibson, the $11 million option for Lynn or the $6 million option for Middleton for the 2025 season. The Cardinals had five days after the conclusion of the World Series to decide on the options, but they made their intentions known to the players on Thursday. Per their contracts, Gibson, Lynn and Middleton will be owed $1 million each after the team declined their options.
Those net financial savings of approximately $26 million should open potential starting pitching opportunities for Andre Pallante, Michael McGreevy and potentially others, while also meeting the club’s stated goals of trimming the team’s payroll for 2025.
“Really, it's just about positioning ourselves this offseason for ultimate flexibility,” said Mozeliak, who will be attending MLB’s General Mangers Meetings in San Antonio, Texas, next week. “Going into next year, we still have Miles [Mikolas], Sonny [Gray], [Steven] Matz, [Erick] Fedde, Pallante and McGreevy knocking on the door. So, we feel like we have some depth there. As the offseason plays out, we'll decide if there's something else that we feel like we need to add to that rotation, but we just want to go into it with flexibility.”
Gibson, a former college standout at Missouri and an offseason resident of suburban St. Louis, was 8-8 with a 4.24 ERA over 30 starts, the second-most starts on the squad in 2024. Gibson, 37, was signed, in part, because of his veteran influence in the clubhouse, and manager Oliver Marmol repeatedly raved about how well the right-hander worked with others to share the knowledge he has gained from pitching in the big leagues since 2013.
Lynn, 37, was back in St. Louis for a second stint after coming up through the Cardinals' Minor League system and pitching for the Redbirds from 2011-17. While passing major milestones for career innings pitched (2,006 1/3) and strikeouts (2,015) in 2024, Lynn went 7-4 with a 3.84 ERA over 117 1/3 frames. Lynn, who spent two extended stretches on the injured list with a troublesome right knee, went 6-0 with a 3.15 ERA in 13 starts at Busch Stadium.
Middleton, 31, was expected to be a key piece of the Cardinals' retooled bullpen following his strong 2023 season with the White Sox and Yankees. However, he strained the flexor tendon ligament in his right forearm in Spring Training and never was available for the Cardinals. He pitched five games over two rehab stints with Double-A Springfield before pain returned in his forearm and he underwent season-ending surgery on his forearm.
“You think back to less than a year ago, when we pursued [Gibson, Lynn and Middleton], and I felt like they fit in really well and I think they were really helpful,” Mozeliak said. “But things also have emerged since then, right? Pallante pitched really well, and we traded for Fedde. So, we're certainly in a different spot than we were a year ago. But yes, those veteran guys did everything that we had hoped for.”
Mozeliak, who is planning to retire following the 2025 season to allow advisor Chaim Bloom to take over as president of baseball operations, has had preliminary talks with veteran players Nolan Arenado, Willson Contreras, Gray and Mikolas to judge their willingness to continue to be a part of a rebuilding Cardinals franchise. All four have full no-trade clauses in their contracts and would have to agree to any trades if the Cardinals choose to deal them to further trim the payroll. Mozeliak said he has a firm grip on the range for the Cardinals' payroll in 2025, even though the club is still facing some revenue stream questions because of the uncertainty over the TV rights fees the club will get for the season ahead.
“This gives us more flexibility, and that's what we're looking for today,” Mozeliak said. “It's Day 1 of a long season ahead and lots of things can transpire between today and report day in Jupiter, [Fla., for Spring Training]. I'm not going to start trying to guess or speculate on exactly what's going to happen. We're going to take each day as it goes and see where it goes.”