St. Louis Cardinals dump Erick Fedde. How will this change the pitching staff?
The St. Louis Cardinals reached an inflection point both in terms of performance and in terms of roster rules on Wednesday, designating right-handed starter Erick Fedde for assignment eight days prior to the July 31 trade deadline. Righty reliever Andre Granillo was recalled from Triple-A Memphis to take Fedde’s spot on the active roster.
All told, Fedde’s tenure in St. Louis lasted six days less than a full year. Acquired last July 29 in a deadline deal which also brought in outfielder Tommy Pham and sent eventual National League Championship Series Most Valuable Player Tommy Edman to the Los Angeles Dodgers, Fedde had been the ace of a dismal Chicago White Sox staff while showcasing a revamped arsenal that was honed during a season playing in Korea.
Upon arrival, however, Fedde acknowledged to his new coaching staff that the work load foisted upon him in Chicago was starting to wear on him, and he posted a pedestrian but passable 3.72 ERA in 10 starts down the stretch.
Entering this year penciled in as perhaps the club’s number two starter, Fedde started in much the same way he finished 2024 before he saw his results take a nose dive. He tossed a complete game shutout on May 9 in Washington against his former club, the Nationals.
That would be his last win recorded as a Cardinal; he was 0-7 with a 6.38 ERA in 12 starts following that game. His record this season is 3-10.
All told, St. Louis would win just eight of Fedde’s 30 starts during his time on the roster.
As a practical matter, other than opening an active roster spot for Granillo and a spot on the 40-player roster for reinforcements as they’re needed or acquired, Wednesday’s move does little to impact the team’s short-term plans. By one method or another, Fedde was going to be moved off the roster before the trade deadline passed, and the Cardinals now have seven days to find a trade partner or pass him through waivers.
Fedde, 32, is owed approximately $2.7 million for the remainder of this season, an amount which the Cardinals could subsidize in a trade or which a claiming team could take on in its entirety should he reach waivers. Otherwise, the Cardinals will be responsible for that sum less a pro-rated portion of the league minimum if he is released and signs a deal elsewhere.
Future for Michael McGreevy
In moving on from Fedde, the Cardinals solidified a place on the roster for righty Michael McGreevy, who turned in seven strong innings on Monday in place of Matthew Liberatore, held back a start to gather extra rest. McGreevy is 2-1 with a 3.49 ERA in five appearances (four starts) this season, and the team has long identified him as ready for the majors, but held in the minors by circumstance.
Those circumstances changed over the last three weeks as Fedde’s performance deteriorated beyond acceptable levels and teammates and coaches began openly stumping for McGreevy to solidify his place in the majors. The Cardinals, though, have been blessed by unusually good health among their pitchers this season, having used only seven starters – none of whom were injury replacements.
A preseason plan for McGreevy to absorb some innings which would come available through natural attrition was no longer sufficient, and the Cardinals had to be proactive. Regardless of their decision to buy or sell at the trade deadline, the team was certain to seek to move on from Fedde in order to open a spot for McGreevy.
Now that move has been codified, and attention turns to what comes next.
After the Cardinals were swept over the weekend in Arizona, president of baseball operations John Mozeliak tacitly acknowledged to reporters in Denver on Monday that the team would begin to seek potential deals for its pending free agents in the run up to the deadline. In addition to Fedde, that group includes closer Ryan Helsley and relievers Phil Maton and Steven Matz.
Starter Miles Mikolas is also a free agent at season’s end, but he holds a full no-trade clause and is yet to show any interest in being dealt.
Further deals could also cut deeper into the roster and involve players with limited years of team control. Mozeliak and his incoming replacement, Chaim Bloom, will be in consultation over the next week as the team seeks to maximize its short term returns on players without risking its long term standing.
Fedde was part of neither of those terms, and while Wednesday’s move accelerated the inevitable, it did not change the already revealed plans for the remainder of the summer. There will be innings to fill and boundless opportunities to showcase abilities to fill them, both for McGreevy and for others who will follow him to the mound over the remaining months of the season.
This story was originally published July 23, 2025 at 1:07 PM.
