3 Swing and Miss Options for the Bullpen

[Talkin' Baseball]

The Cardinals have a few bullpen pieces to work with, and I’m certain they will sign some major league free agents to help fill out a bullpen for the coming season (as they should), but here are three quiet moves to add some swing and miss to the bullpen going forward. They aren’t all currently ready, but they are close.

1) Samy Natera Jr. from the Los Angeles Angels. He is a 26 year-old left-hander who ended the season pitching at AAA. Natera is the Angels # 20 rated prospect. He has a pitcher’s build at 6’4” and 230 lbs with a fastball that averages 97-98 and tops out at 100 mph. Natera does not yet require a roster spot. Last season he made 49 appearances, pitching 57 innings, and striking out 85. Opponents only managed a .177 BA against him. (Current BTV 2) The Angels need 2B, 3B, and starting pitching. The only left handed hitting infielder the Angels have is 1B Nolan Schanuel. Possible trade pieces the Angels would accept: Nolan Arenado and cash, Cesar Prieto 2B/3B (BTV 2.3), or Pete Hansen LHP (BTV 3.3).

2) Hunter Cranton from the Arizona Diamondbacks. Cranton is a 25 year-old right-hander who last pitched at AA. He is Arizona’s #27 prospect. He stands 6’3” and goes 215. His fastball is rated a 70 on the 20/80 scouting scale and also possesses a good slider. Like Natera, Cranton does not yet require a roster spot. In a short pro career he has struck out 14 batters per nine innings. (Current BTV 2.5) The Angels need a 3B and starting pitching. They only have one top 20 pitching prospect that has reached AAA. Possible trade pieces of interest to the Diamondbacks: Nolan Arenado and cash, or Pete Hansen LHP (BTV 3.3)

3) RJ Petit from the Detroit Tigers. Petit is a 26 year-old right-hander who pitched at AAA last season. He is the Tigers #30 prospect. Petit is 6’8” and weighs in at 300 lbs. (You read that right) Petit sports a mid-90’s fastball with a good slider, and reasonable changeup. In 2025 at 2 levels Petit appeared in 47 games, pitched 66.1 innings, and struck out 79 hitters. He logged a 1.05 WHIP. Petit has been left unprotected in the Rule 5 draft to a team willing to keep him on the big league roster all season. The Cardinals could do that.

It wouldn’t be impossible for the Cardinals to make any, or all of these transactions. There is some real swing and miss there without breaking the bank.

[Talkin' Baseball]

Also of note, all of these are true relief pitchers, none are near the top of anyone's prospect list, and they are starting to get a bit long in the tooth to remain as "prospects".

[Ozziesfan41]

The Cardinals have a few bullpen pieces to work with, and I’m certain they will sign some major league free agents to help fill out a bullpen for the coming season (as they should), but here are three quiet moves to add some swing and miss to the bullpen going forward. They aren’t all currently ready, but they are close.

1) Samy Natera Jr. from the Los Angeles Angels. He is a 26 year-old left-hander who ended the season pitching at AAA. Natera is the Angels # 20 rated prospect. He has a pitcher’s build at 6’4” and 230 lbs with a fastball that averages 97-98 and tops out at 100 mph. Natera does not yet require a roster spot. Last season he made 49 appearances, pitching 57 innings, and striking out 85. Opponents only managed a .177 BA against him. (Current BTV 2) The Angels need 2B, 3B, and starting pitching. The only left handed hitting infielder the Angels have is 1B Nolan Schanuel. Possible trade pieces the Angels would accept: Nolan Arenado and cash, Cesar Prieto 2B/3B (BTV 2.3), or Pete Hansen LHP (BTV 3.3).

2) Hunter Cranton from the Arizona Diamondbacks. Cranton is a 25 year-old right-hander who last pitched at AA. He is Arizona’s #27 prospect. He stands 6’3” and goes 215. His fastball is rated a 70 on the 20/80 scouting scale and also possesses a good slider. Like Natera, Cranton does not yet require a roster spot. In a short pro career he has struck out 14 batters per nine innings. (Current BTV 2.5) The Angels need a 3B and starting pitching. They only have one top 20 pitching prospect that has reached AAA. Possible trade pieces of interest to the Diamondbacks: Nolan Arenado and cash, or Pete Hansen LHP (BTV 3.3)

3) RJ Petit from the Detroit Tigers. Petit is a 26 year-old right-hander who pitched at AAA last season. He is the Tigers #30 prospect. Petit is 6’8” and weighs in at 300 lbs. (You read that right) Petit sports a mid-90’s fastball with a good slider, and reasonable changeup. In 2025 at 2 levels Petit appeared in 47 games, pitched 66.1 innings, and struck out 79 hitters. He logged a 1.05 WHIP. Petit has been left unprotected in the Rule 5 draft to a team willing to keep him on the big league roster all season. The Cardinals could do that.

It wouldn’t be impossible for the Cardinals to make any, or all of these transactions. There is some real swing and miss there without breaking the bank.

I like the idea. As we saw last season a good bullpen is going to keep you in games and win you games and with a dumb paint by numbers manager like oli a good bullpen is a must because you need to keep him from having to manage as much as possible. I hope he does go for some high octane bullpen arms in the rule 5 draft and trades for some also

[Talkin' Baseball]

If even one of them worked out, that would be tremendous. If none of them worked out, what have you lost?

[Alex Reyes Cy Young]

If even one of them worked out, that would be tremendous. If none of them worked out, what have you lost?

Getting swing and miss for the BP is brilliant and required to be effective.

[Charlie Smoke]

Good work on this research. Reasonable and possibly effective.