It's time for Cardinals to admit this offseason addition was a mistake

After another poor start by St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Kyle Gibson, it's time to cut ties with the 36-year-old offseason addition.

Signed to a one-year, $12M deal with a club option for the 2025 season, it was a questionable signing at the time and looks worse each time he takes the mound.

In his three starts this spring, Gibson is 0-2 with a 10.80 ERA allowing 12 earned runs and four home runs over 10 innings pitched. 

While Gibson is known for his ability to eat innings, he doesn't do it efficiently with a career 4.54 ERA including a 4.88 ERA over the past two seasons. 

On a team coming off their worst finish since 1995, the Cardinals set out to improve the rotation, but outside of one major addition in pitcher Sonny Gray, there is little to get excited for heading into the 2024 season. 

Gibson and pitcher Lance Lynn were the other additions to the rotation, with Lynn coming off a historically bad season allowing an MLB-leading 44 home runs while finishing with a 5.73 ERA in 183.2 innings pitched.

The Cardinals enter the 2024 season stuck with a rotation filled with question marks including three of the top five pitchers in hits allowed last season with Gibson, Lynn and returning Cardinals pitcher Miles Mikolas.

Although there is a familiar face who is still a free agent that would immediately upgrade their chances to compete for the postseason in 2024.

That player is pitcher Jordan Montgomery, the 31-year-old left-hander started 2023 with the Cardinals before being traded to the Texas Rangers at the trade deadline where he helped them win their first World Series in franchise history.