The St. Louis Cardinals made a big splash on Monday in a move that will give a much-needed boost to their rotation. According to The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal, the Cardinals locked All-Star pitcher Sonny Gray to a three-year deal.
Reportedly, Gray received an average annual salary of $25 million, which brings the total value of the deal to $75 million.
Gray had a strong 2023 campaign, making 32 starts with the Minnesota Twins. He went 8-8, posting a 2.79 ERA with 183 strikeouts. The 34-year-old player also allowed only eight home runs, earning his third career All-Star nod and finishing second in American League Cy Young Award voting.
The Cardinals entered the offseason with only two starting pitchers on their books: Miles Mikolas and Steven Matz. President of baseball operations John Mozeliak tackled the issue by adding Lance Lynn and Kyle Gibson on short-term deals last week and now beating several teams to land Gray. The moves give them one of the more experienced rotations in the league and provide hope they can improve on the disappointing 71-91 finish in 2023.
Sonny Gray will be playing his 12th season in the majors in 2024. He started his career in 2013 with the Oakland Athletics, where he spent five years before embarking on stints with the New York Yankees, Cincinnati Reds, and the Twins. He has a career record of 98–85 with a 3.47 ERA and 1,521 strikeouts.
