DENVER, CO – JULY 04: Carlos Martinez #18 of the St. Louis Cardinals walks to the dugout before a game against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field on July 4, 2021 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images)
These three players from the 2021 St. Louis Cardinals season are failing miserably with different teams in 2022.
The 2022 St. Louis Cardinals look a lot like the 2021 team but with a few changes made by the front office in hopes of improving the ball club. They didn’t need to undertake any sort of an overhaul to be serious contenders this year. They already had the tools to do it.
Many of the contributors from last season who aren’t having such good years fall into this description because they can’t even get a job playing baseball. Some, like Jon Lester, even retired.
However, there are a few members of the 2021 Cardinals who have found themselves failing miserably with other teams in 2022.
1) Former Cardinals failing miserably in 2022: Carlos Martinez
It’s better to burn out than to fade away. It’s not quite clear which one Carlos Martinez has done.
A two-time All-Star for St. Louis, Martinez moved from the starting rotation to the bullpen in more recent seasons. He had a ton of success pitching exclusively in relief for them in 2019, going 4-2 with a 3.17 ERA. It would be his last dose of success with the Cardinals. The past two years were rough.
In 2020, now back in the rotation, Martinez went 0-3 with a 9.90 ERA in 5 starts. It was a strange year so he got another shot in 2021. Unfortunately, he’d go just 4-9 with a 6.23 ERA in 16 starts.
Martinez hasn’t pitched a major league game in 2022 but did land an opportunity with the Triple-A team of the Boston Red Sox, the Worcester Red Sox. He lasted a total of only 4.1 innings in both of his starts combined and had a 20.77 ERA. This inflated number was due to the 10 earned runs he gave up.
At only 30-years-old, it’s looking like Martinez’s career could be over already.