Redbird Droppings: Winter Meetings Day 3 – Draft Order, Willson Contreras, Jose Quintana

Another quiet day for the Cardinals at the Winter Meetings, just that jaw-dropping Guillermo Zuniga signing (scouting report). There was a little news on Willson Contreras, Jose Quintana leaves the market, and MLB set the draft order.

An Offer to Contreras
There have been a few reports of the Cardinals offering a contract to Willson Contreras. First it was reported that the Cardinals have offered a multi-year deal, along with the Astros and a mystery team; Contreras was rumored to be wanting a 4-year commitment. Derrick Goold clarified that the offer was more “informal” and that they are still talking with teams about trading for a catcher.

John Denton adds more to the Contreras rumors:

I think they are keeping the lines of communication open with Contreras, but are hoping to pull of a trade before he’s off the market. If the Astros or the mystery team get aggressive, the Cardinals might have to adjust and make their play here.

Update: The Cardinals and Contreras are close to a deal per Ken Rosenthal. It should be done soon. The Cardinals will forfeit their 3rd round draft pick if/when the deal is completed. The Cardinals may shift to trades to fill in the rest of the roster and would expected to be out on Dansby Swanson.

Side note: The Diamondbacks have talked to the A’s about Sean Murphy, adding another team to the growing list of those interested in the catcher.

Thank You For Your Services, Mr Quintana
Jose Quintana is off the board; the Mets have signed the pitcher to a 2 year, $26M contract. The Cardinals might not have been able to go that high for Quintana, but $13M a year is a steal if he’s the same pitcher the Cardinals rented last season.

The Cardinals were interested in a reunion, but they’ll have to look elsewhere now. Granted, they might stand pat with the abundance of rotation options they have one the roster already.

MLB Draft Order
MLB held their lottery for the draft order last night; the Cardinals will pick at #21, which was not impacted by the lottery. Here’s the full order:

1. Pirates
2. Nationals
3. Tigers
4. Rangers
5. Twins
6. A’s
7. Reds
8. Royals
9. Rockies
10. Marlins
11. Angels
12. Diamondbacks
13. Cubs
14. Red Sox
15. White Sox
16. Giants
17. Orioles
18. Brewers
19. Rays
20. Blue Jays
21. Cardinals
22. Mets
23. Mariners
24. Guardians
25. Braves
26. Dodgers
27. Padres
28. Yankees
29. Phillies
30. Astros

More Ex-Cardinal Marlins
Skip Schumaker is building an ex-Cardinal coaching staff in Miami. The former bench coach already brought in Jon Jay, and it was announced yesterday that John Mabry would join the staff as an assistant hitting coach. There have to be groans in Miami right now; if you look at Mabry’s tenure as hitting coach under Mike Matheny, you’ll see the Cardinals offense was very one-sided and bad for his years on the staff.

I believe he had more to do with Matt Carpenters fall-off then Jeff Albert; Marp went from a slap hitter with limited power to a power hitter who sacrificed some average by 2018 when Mabry was fired. His best season was 2013, when he didn’t have Mabry adjusting things.

Around the Web

• Other thoughts on Contreras: Clutchpoint, Call to the Pen, Larry Brown Sports.
• The Film Room has Oli Marmol‘s thoughts on 2022.
• Does the Cold Wire have the Cardinals free agency plan?
• Redbird Rants has more on Day 3.
• Here is the Exit Interview of Oli Marmol from the Cards Conclave.