Padres reportedly sign ex-Cardinals infielder to bolster depth for the 2024 season.
The St. Louis Cardinals are just a few weeks away from starting their campaign to rebound from one of the worst seasons in franchise history in 2023.
Despite the recent injury report for starter Sonny Gray, who will most likely miss his Opening Day start against the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Cardinals are not concerned and appear confidence in their reinvigorated team.
The Cardinals have retooled their pitching staff this offseason and have a good position player depth. It’s hardly surprising that the club passed on an opportunity to reunite with a former St. Louis infielder who has supposedly signed with a National League rival.
The Padres have signed longtime infielder Brad Miller to a minor league contract with an invitation to major league camp, according to MLB.com’s AJ Cassavell on Tuesday.
Miller batted.232 with 16 extra-base hits, seven home runs, 25 RBIs, and a.808 OPS while playing shortstop, third base, and second base in 48 games for St. Louis during the 2020 abbreviated season.
The 34-year-old has played for seven teams, including the Seattle Mariners, Tampa Bay Rays, Milwaukee Brewers, Cleveland Indians, Philadelphia Phillies, Cardinals, and, most recently, the Texas Rangers.
The journeyman owns a.236/.314/.416 slash line and can potentially be a productive player, but Miller has struggled with injuries the past two seasons, appearing in only 27 games last season and 81 the previous year.
A reunion with Miller would not have made sense for the Cardinals, who recently added four-time Gold Glove winner Brandon Crawford to enhance their infield depth and do not look to need any more acquisitions.
It’s hard to imagine the Cardinals making any more changes this late in free agency, but it’s still possible — hopefully for more pitching depth.
More MLB: Cardinals linked to trio of starting pitchers following Sonny Gray’s unfortunate injury