St. Louis Cardinals Acquire Justin Masterson From Cleveland

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The St. Louis Cardinals have acquired starting pitcher Justin Masterson from the Cleveland Indians according to multiple sources.

This move presumably takes the Cardinals out of the Jon Lester and David Price race, as they added a much needed pitcher for a lot less than what they had to give up to acquire the other starters.

The Cardinals franticly looked to add rotation depth, as they lost Michael Wacha and Jaime Garcia. Wacha is hoping to return in September while Garcia is out for the year.

Masterson has battled a knee injury and is currently on the disabled list. He was set to come off to start Friday’s game before he was sent to St. Louis. He has pitched in 19 games, posting a horrific 5.51 ERA and 1.65 WHIP. Masterson does have an 8.54 K/9 rate, which shows that he still has the ability to return to his once dominant self.

Another sign that points to Masterson to returning to the ace he was in 2011 and again in 2013 is his FIP (fielder independent pitching on an ERA scale), which is 4.08. That means – *assuming performance on balls in play and timing were league average – his ERA would be 4.08, 1.43 less than what he has now.

Moving to the National League give the right-hander a new start. He is reportedly in consideration to start Saturday’s game against the Milwaukee Brewers. Carlos Martinez will likely return to the bullpen – where he was before injuries led to his promotion to the rotation.

In return, the Indians will receive minor leaguer James Ramsey. The outfielder currently has a .300 average with 13 home runs and 36 RBI for Double-A.

*Definition taken from FanGraphs