Matt Carpenter is back in St. Louis. The former World Series Champion infielder/designated hitter will rejoin the St. Louis Cardinals in a move the team announced on Friday.
Carpenter, who’s last played for the San Diego Padres and New York Yankees, returns to the team where he made a name for himself. The Cards and Carpenter agreed to terms on a one-year deal that will bring him back to the Midwest.
“Welcome back, Matt!” The Cardinals boasted. “We have signed three-time All-Star INF Matt Carpenter to a one-year contract for the 2024 season,” they posted. St. Louis made the news official on X, the website formerly known as Twitter.
Welcome back, Matt!
We have signed three-time All-Star INF Matt Carpenter to a one-year contract for the 2024 season.#ForTheLou pic.twitter.com/qtA6d0wCcX
— St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) January 19, 2024
Carpenter, 38, returns to the Cardinals after he played for them for eleven seasons. In those eleven years, he slashed .262/.368/449, good for an OPS that hashes out to .816. 2013 was his most productive season in Cardinal red. He recorded 199 hits, 126 runs scored, 55 doubles, and 11 home runs while slashing .318/.392/.481 to sport an .873 OPS. He exceeded that number in 2018, when he posted an OPS of .897.
It will only be a question of how frequently you’ll see Carpenter play. He played in over 100 games from 2012-2019 and 2021 with the Cardinals. Since then, however, he played just 47 games with the New York Yankees before getting hurt. He then followed that up by playing 76 games with the San Diego Padres last season. In other words, if you’re expecting a full season’s worth of Matt Carpenter now, you might be disappointed.
But for the Cardinals, they’re probably looking at this as a nice reunion and a good left-handed bat off the bench. Plus, he’s a fan favorite and will surely energize someone in the fanbase.
