Brandon Crawford's Stats, Metrics, Game Logs, Projections & Rankings

The St. Louis Cardinals granted veteran shortstop Brandon Crawford his unconditional release on Tuesday to help make room on the roster for infielders Matt Carpenter (back) and Luken Baker. In his first year with St. Louis, Crawford hasn't seen much action behind starter Masyn Winn, playing in only 28 games and hitting .169/.263/.282 with a career-worst .544 OPS, one home runs, five doubles, four RBI and five runs scored. The three-time All-Star will now look to latch on with another organization to close out the 2024 season, but he's probably going to have to settle for a minor-league contract. This very well could be the 37-year-old's final year in the big leagues after a successful 14-year stint in the majors that begin in 2011 with the San Francisco Giants. Crawford had only appeared in four games for the Red Birds after the All-Star break.

The St. Louis Cardinals signed free-agent shortstop Brandon Crawford to an undisclosed deal on Monday, according to league sources. The three-time All-Star with the San Francisco Giants is expected to serve as the backup to 21-year-old rookie shortstop Masyn Winn while the team awaits further clarity on Tommy Edman's recovery from wrist surgery. Crawford spent the previous 13 seasons in the Bay Area, playing a key role in the team's 2012 and 2014 World Series championships. He was an All-Star as recently as 2021, but his performance started to decline in 2022, and he appeared in just 93 games last year due to various injuries and finished with a meager .194/.273/.314 slash line. The 37-year-old is a good defender but can't be counted on for offensive production at this point, and the 2024 season could easily be Crawford's last as a pro.

The St. Louis Cardinals and free-agent shortstop Brandon Crawford could be nearing an agreement, per the San Francisco Chronicle's Susan Slusser. The long-time Giants infielder's tenure with the club all be ended on Monday when the team agreed to a contract with veteran shortstop Nick Ahmed. After exploding for an MVP-caliber 2021 season, it has been a struggle at the plate for Crawford over the last two seasons. Most recently, he hit .94 with seven home runs, three stolen bases, and a .587 OPS across just 94 games last season, production that graded out 37% below the league average, as per his 63 wRC+. He has spent all 13 of his big-league seasons with the Giants.

Free-agent shortstop Brandon Crawford continues to weigh his options while deciding if he wants to continue playing in 2024. He confirmed that "a number of teams have checked in and have expressed interest. (I'm) still evaluating my options before deciding what's next," Crawford said. He makes his offseason home in Arizona, but the Diamondbacks probably aren't an option for him after they set their infield with the trade for third baseman Eugenio Suarez this winter. There's reason to believe the Oakland Athletics would benefit from some veteran leadership in their young infield, but it remains to be seen if Crawford wants to end his career with the worst team in baseball. It's a long shot that the San Francisco Giants will reunite with Crawford, even though they still haven't added a versatile infielder who can play a plus shortstop to complement the young Marco Luciano.