Deal Crisis: Cardinals Top Man Paul Goldschmidt Rejects 286.6 Million To Cardinals….

Even though Paul Goldschmidt is struggling in 2024, the St. Louis Cardinals don’t seem to be prepared to part ways with the future Hall of Fame first baseman just yet. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch’s Derrick Goold (paid subscription required) reports that the Cardinals will speak with Goldschmidt following the season to determine whether he would be interested in signing a new deal.

For a 36-year-old player in the latter year of a five-year contract, Goldschmidt’s projected career-worst season shouldn’t come as a huge surprise. With an OPS+ of 90 and a current hitting average of.232, Cardinals manager Oli Marmol has inserted him as low as the seventh hitter on occasion.

Even with his recent problems, Goldschmidt seems to still have value as a bat, even if in a supporting position for the Cardinals. The Cardinals can only reduce Goldschmidt’s pay by a maximum of 20% if they choose to re-sign him before he becomes a free agent. This means that Goldschmidt’s minimum compensation for 2025 would be $17.6 million. Naturally, the Cardinals and Goldschmidt may work out a new deal that does not have to fulfill this requirement if they wait until the free agency season and let Goldschmidt talk to other teams about terms.