EVERY YEAR...EVERY YEAR...The Cards should try to win

[Stlcardsblues]

Cincy was in the playoffs with 83 wins. It's embarrassing STL fans can't expect 83 wins every year. Sounds like we're ready for new owners.

Cardinals should be striving for building a World Series contender, not an 83 win team that sneaks in and has little to no chance. The middle 10 spots are the worst to be in.

Let's be real. There will be ONE team left standing every year. Getting hot at the right time (playoffs) is a more realistic goal than outspending LA, NY, and the usual suspects.

I never said outspend anyone. I said build a deep team not a pretender which gets bounced early. How did the Reds do when they were in the playoffs?

[Ozziesfan41]

Cincy was in the playoffs with 83 wins. It's embarrassing STL fans can't expect 83 wins every year. Sounds like we're ready for new owners.

Cardinals should be striving for building a World Series contender, not an 83 win team that sneaks in and has little to no chance. The middle 10 spots are the worst to be in.

Let's be real. There will be ONE team left standing every year. Getting hot at the right time (playoffs) is a more realistic goal than outspending LA, NY, and the usual suspects.

Yea don’t have to out spend them. The 2011 team was a solid team with a solid core but had glaring holes mo went out and fixed those holes through trades that didn’t cost the farm or a lot of money just improved every thing that needed to be upgraded and the rest is history. Getting hot at the right time is a pipe dream the naive and gullible tell themselves mo even convinced himself of that and it failed

[Bully4you]

It can make you mad and I understand the viewpoint, but the Cardinals aren't trying to compete for a World Series next year. Might as well accept it.

Yep.
It's a rebuild at this point.
Sad.

What's sad is that you don't get it.

The 2026 team isn't gonna win the WS. No amount of reasonable free-agent adds will significantly improve those odds.

The Cardinals are not the Dodgers or Yankees. They lack the resources to compete for the World Series every year. Fact is: If the Cardinals try to nominally "compete" every year, they end up never really competing for the World Series at all.

I don't like it any better than you do, but that's the truth.

The next best strategy is to rebuild with young players, then when you're close to critical mass and have plenty of MO's famous "dry powder," you add some free agents and go for it.

I'm accepting it RBC, but not thrilled with a rebuild.
And it will make attracting future free agents much more difficult as well.
I think this could be a decade or more drought.
We shall see.

[mattmitchl44]

It can make you mad and I understand the viewpoint, but the Cardinals aren't trying to compete for a World Series next year. Might as well accept it.

Yep.
It's a rebuild at this point.
Sad.

What's sad is that you don't get it.

The 2026 team isn't gonna win the WS. No amount of reasonable free-agent adds will significantly improve those odds.

The Cardinals are not the Dodgers or Yankees. They lack the resources to compete for the World Series every year. Fact is: If the Cardinals try to nominally "compete" every year, they end up never really competing for the World Series at all.

I don't like it any better than you do, but that's the truth.

The next best strategy is to rebuild with young players, then when you're close to critical mass and have plenty of MO's famous "dry powder," you add some free agents and go for it.

I'm accepting it RBC, but not thrilled with a rebuild.
And it will make attracting future free agents much more difficult as well.
I think this could be a decade or more drought.
We shall see.

Attracting FAs will take what it always takes - money.

I'm going to add this to the list of manufactured reasons by some people to rationalize a need for the Cardinals to spend, spend, spend right now:

1) if the Cardinals don't spend, all the fans will go away, never to return, so the team will never have revenue to spend in the future
2) if the Cardinals don't spend, they won't have veteran players to teach all the young player how to win - regular season and postseason
3) if the Cardinals don't spend, the team will look bad and no FAs will take their money in the future

[CCard]

This Sonny Gray trade should be looked at to answer 1 question--Did it make the team better?
As of right now we have $20M and 2 prospects for our best pitcher.
So, this just confirmed we are officially rebuilding.
Everyone here is so ecstatic over a couple of prospects.
One throws hard.
The other injured a lot.
Bottom line, we are most likely last in the division after this move.
Really nothing to celebrate here.
He may reinvest the $20M into another free agent.
That will help.
But as of this moment, Cards are a last place team.
Of course we have much of the off season to go.
So, let's see what happens.

I don't know if it makes us better. Obviously Sonny was a top tier pitcher and neither of these pitchers are that, yet. But you do possibly fill two starter slots with strong you pitchers that might excel. The 20 million is a one time thing and it'll be forgotten in a year. I actually like the trade right now. If it improves the staff overall then it'll be okay. Apparently Clarke is rated fairly high. Fitts could wind up being a Helsley type.

[Ronnie Dobbs]

I'm accepting it RBC, but not thrilled with a rebuild.
And it will make attracting future free agents much more difficult as well.
I think this could be a decade or more drought.
We shall see.

Lol, no it won't. You know what attracts free agents? Money. Also, it's a pretty good situation to be in if you get to join a young, up and coming team, and be the star veteran face of a storied franchise.