Free agency is open and the St. Louis Cardinals could make moves at any moment. With a looming lockout coming in December, it's going to be a long — and complicated — offseason.

For the Cardinals, their offseason needs couldn't be clearer. The Cardinals need bullpen help, a veteran starter and maybe a third baseman, if Chaim Bloom views any of the available options, like Alec Bohm, as an upgrade over Thomas Saggese and Blaze Jordan. Arguably, the Cardinals should move quickly because there's no way to know when things will continue after a lockout begins. On the rotation front, The Athletic's Tim Britton, Johnny Flores Jr. and Chad Jennings connected the Cardinals to one of the most interesting free agents of the offseason: Trevor Rogers.

"The lefty Rogers revived his career over the last season-and-a-half with the Orioles, belatedly fulfilling the promise he’d shown as a rookie in Miami," Britton, Flores Jr. and Jennings wrote. "He’s not quite as good as the 1.81 ERA he flashed in 2025, but he pitched better than the 4.03 ERA he posted last season; a signing team should expect a number starting with a three moving forward. ... Best fits:
[Atlanta Braves], [Chicago White Sox], STL, [Tampa Bay Rays], [Washington Nationals]."

Why St. Louis Should Pursue Trevor Rogers

Rogers is coming off a very solid 2026 campaign in which he logged a 4.03 ERA in 30 starts, to go along with a 157-to-39 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 169 2/3 innings of work. In 2025, he had a 1.81 ERA in 18 starts across 109 2/3 innings pitched.

Rogers is talented and is on the younger side as well among the top free agents out there this winter. Right now, Rogers is just 28 years old. Last offseason, the Cardinals weren't overtly aggressive in free agency, but they did bring a few pieces in, like Dustin May. At the time, May was in a similar boat to Rogers as one of the youngest free agents to hit the open market. The Cardinals pursued him aggressively and got a deal done.

The Cardinals have a need in the starting rotation again and Rogers is young, like May was last year. It makes almost too much sense for the Cardinals to pursue him. Plus, the Cardinals' payroll is so low right now that it can afford to sign someone like Rogers, even if The Athletic's four-year, $84 million projection comes true.

Rogers has a 3.88 ERA in 132 total appearances in the majors. St. Louis should be all over him in free agency.