Pondering a full teardown and what the 2025 Cardinals would look like

A deep rebuild that strips the roster of almost all its incumbent veterans probably isn’t likely, but let’s assume it happens -- first, by looking at the offense

Very likely, the Cardinals’ offseason ahead is going to be mostly notable for payroll disinvestment via trades of veterans. That’s part of the “reset” that will be undertaken in John Mozeliak’s final year as president of baseball operations. The primary goal, of course, is to put organizational emphasis on improving a player-development program that’s degraded across recent history. It’s not certain how deep that reset will reach, but it’s within the range of possibilities that vets like Sonny Gray, Willson Contreras, Nolan Arenado, and Ryan Helsely, among others, will be elsewhere in 2025. 

Of those, Gray, Helsley, and Contreras, to my thinking, have positive trade value and would return controllable young talent on top of any salary relief (the Cardinals of course can improve their returns by including cash in any Gray and Contreras deals, but who knows whether ownership is willing to do that). Arenado is a less certain situation. He’s in decline, but the improvement he showed defensively in the second half may make him more appealing to win-now clubs. His contract is complicated, though, and the remaining salary commitment probably outstrips his remaining on-field value. There are also no-trade provisions for Gray, Contreras, and Arenado that must be addressed. All of that is for another day. Instead, I’m devoting the next two episodes of Birdy Work to what I think the lineup and pitching staff for 2025 should look like if the front office enters “scorched-earth” territory or thereabouts. By that I mean, let’s assume that Gray, Contreras, Arenado, and Helsley are all shipped off this winter and not immediately replaced with external talents. This time out, I’m looking at the offense. 

So here’s my preferred post-teardown lineup for 2025: