The St. Louis Cardinals are heading into the 2018 season without a defined closer in their bullpen, but they managed to fill the need just hours before Opening Day.
Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports reports that the Cardinals reached a deal with relief pitcher Greg Holland on Thursday
breaking: #STLCards are moving close to a deal with closer greg holland. would fuill their one hole. no details known yet.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) March 29, 2018
holland and STLCards have a deal now. $14M.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) March 29, 2018
Holland saved 41 games in 45 attempts with the Colorado Rockies last year. He had not pitched for 16 months prior to that because of Tommy John Surgery, but he had a stretch with the Kansas City Royals from 2013-2015 during which he was one of the more reliable closers in baseball. His 41 saves last season were tied for the lead in the National League and led to an All-Star appearance.
Holland declined his player option for 2018, and one report claims he turned down a significant offer that would have kept him with the Rockies. The Cardinals were planning to use a closer-by-committee approach to start the season, so they should be a good fit for Holland.
