Lance Lynn critical of Cardinals after Mike Leake trade
The St. Louis Cardinals appear to be giving up on the postseason for 2017, and starting pitcher Lance Lynn is not happy about it.
The Cardinals traded starter Mike Leake to the Seattle Mariners on Wednesday, even kicking in about $17 million of the $55 million still owed to the pitcher to make the deal happen. That did not sit well with Lynn, who found out about the trade on social media.
“If you look at everything that’s happened so far, there’s been no acquisitions (by the Cardinals),” Lynn said, via Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “There’s been taking away — whether that’s been injuries or trades. Whoever’s coming up to make that start, we’re going to need something good from them — testing our depth from within.
“So we’re five back in both (the division and wild card races) and we’re taking away a pitcher who can pitch 200 innings and get outs at a high level. That’s tough.”
Lynn is a free agent at the end of the season, but when asked if the money the team will save from the Leake trade could end up going to him as part of a long-term deal, the pitcher was extremely pessimistic, and seemingly quite disillusioned with how the club has handled his contract expiry.
“You can’t say that. There’s been no talks. There’s been zero communication whatsoever,” Lynn said. “I’m sure whenever the time comes — when the World Series is over and five days after, I’m sure somebody will talk to me. I just don’t know who it is. They’ve had a whole season. Five days isn’t going to matter. But I just work here.”
It’s safe to say that Cardinal players and management haven’t always seen eye-to-eye this season, but Lynn’s comments are particularly disillusioned. He doesn’t seem to think he has much of a long-term future in St. Louis, and on the evidence, one has to doubt if he even wants one.
