It is with much happiness that I say out loud that we are now only days away from pitchers and catchers reporting to Spring Training. That means we can now look at what St. Louis Cardinals President of Baseball Operations Chaim Bloom was able to accomplish. What grade would you give him for his first real offseason of work?
Chaim got an early jump on the winter months by trading Sonny Gray to the Boston Red Sox. That was followed by convincing Willson Contreras to also waive his no-trade clause and accept a trade to Boston. He also signed free agent pitcher Dustin May to a one-year deal. Chaim also managed to find a home for Nolan Arenado as he was traded along with several briefcases of cash to the Arizona Diamondbacks for a low-end prospect. Finally, this week the St. Louis Cardinals only all-star last season Brendan Donovan was traded to the Seattle Mariners for 3 prospects and 2 draft picks.
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While I am more interested in your take on Chaim Bloom’s many offseason moves, I’ll kick in my two cents. My grade for Chaim Bloom would be an A-. He accomplished nearly everything he said he wanted to do when the offseason began. He moved veteran players that were impeding play time for young talent along with big chunks of their large salaries and he acquired young players, some with a very high upside. Why not a perfect score? As of this moment, the St. Louis Cardinals still have JoJo Romero on their staff which isn’t a bad thing, but he’s likely a valued trade option for many teams needing a left-handed relief arm. In the press conference explaining the Brendan Donovan trade, Chaim Bloom did say that he would not be turning his phone off if other teams wanted to make additional moves so maybe that perfect A grade is still attainable.
Since beauty is in the eye of the beholder (or not), what is your opinion of the St. Louis Cardinals offseason moves? Would you give Chaim Bloom a high grade or is there something about the trades and acquisitions that trouble you?