Cardinals Lose Veteran Outfielder to Astros

The Cardinals Lost A Power Bat

Velázquez may not have spent long in the Cardinals' organization, but he was a positive addition. He signed a minor league deal with the Cardinals back in January and outperformed his deal. It's almost impossible to hand out a bad minor league deal. They're typically dice rolls. If the player does well and earns a spot on the big league roster, that helps the club in the majors for cheap. If the player doesn't make it up to the big leagues, then it's a cheap miss.

When it comes to Velázquez, he was a positive addition. In Spring Training, he had a nearly perfect first impression with Cardinals fans. He played in 15 games for the Cardinals in Spring Training and slashed .357/.449/.667 with four homers, 10 RBIs, seven walks, and struck out just four times. While it didn't earn him a spot on the big league roster right away, he made a name for himself among the Cardinals fanbase and kicked off the season down in Triple-A.

Eventually, Velázquez earned a promotion to St. Louis and hit four home runs and drove in 12 runs in 34 games played. With Velázquez, the Cardinals added a right-handed bat with power potential.

The Astros have been a club that has been looking for help in the outfield dating back to this past offseason. Now, they're getting a guy who can come in and provide depth at all three outfield spots while bringing some pop to an already electric lineup.

Again, Velázquez may not have spent a lot of time in St. Louis, but he provided some much-needed pop in his short time and a few electric moments. It would've been great for the organization if he went unclaimed and could've stayed in the organization, but that just wasn't in the cards.