Cardinals Urged To Sign $91 Million Free Agent Ace

"Speaking of long shots, the St. Louis Cardinals are a massive one. They weren't bad in 2025, but they finished under .500 and are likely going to make several of their veteran players, including Nolan Arenado and Sonny Gray, available on the trade block," Rotman wrote. "I'm not convinced that the Cardinals will try to win in the short term, but if they do, I think they've got an outside shot of stealing the NL Central. And their odds would increase exponentially if they were to sign Michael King.

"The Cardinals need starting pitching. Gray's future in St. Louis is uncertain, and while guys like Michael McGreevy and Matthew Liberatore are decent, they're far from frontline starters at this stage of their careers. This team had a 4.67 rotation ERA this season, good for 25th in the league. A guy like Michael King can drastically change things in St. Louis. He won't come cheap, but he might be cheaper than he should be."

This prediction makes almost zero sense for the Cardinals.

The Cardinals have made it quite evident that they're not looking to contend next season. They've traded expiring players at the trade deadline and are still reportedly looking for suitors for Sonny Gray, Nolan Arenado, and Willson Contreras.

With King's age, he's likely only going to be good for the short-term, which doesn't fit the Cardinals' timeline.

The Cardinals likely wouldn't want to give him anything close to Spotrac's projection either, while a team like the Boston Red Sox or New York Mets might be more willing to do so.