St. Louis Cardinals Sign Top Starting Pitcher

The St. Louis Cardinals have signed Steven Matz to a four-year contract that comes with a guaranteed $44 million. With that, incentives can push that number up to $48 million. That's not bad at all for the 30-year-old starter

Left-hander Steven Matz and the St. Louis Cardinals are in agreement on a four-year, $44 million contract, pending physical, sources familiar with the deal tell ESPN. Matz is coming off a career-best season and has a chance to get to $48 million and will receive a signing bonus.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) November 24, 2021

After a rough 2020 campaign with the New York Mets, Matz signed with the Toronto Blue Jays in hopes of rebounding. When looking at how he pitched this season for the club, it's fair to say that he did just that. In 29 games, he had a 14-7 record, 3.82 ERA and 144 strikeouts.

If Matz is able to replicate that kind of success with the Cardinals from here, this should be an excellent deal for them. When looking at St. Louis' rotation, there's a strong chance Matz will be their third guy behind ace Jack Flaherty and longtime Cardinal Adam Wainwright. That's not a bad trio and they still could elect to build on that this offseason.

In 141 career games between the Mets and Blue Jays, Matz has a 45-48 record, 4.24 ERA and 696 strikeouts.