Richard Fitts

Fitts prepared to compete for a spot on the back end of Boston's rotation or its bullpen, but the Red Sox traded him to St. Louis to land Sonny Gray. That deal likely means Fitts will be part of the Cardinals rotation. The right-hander fought through a couple of injuries and made 11 appearances (10 starts) 2025, posting a 5.00 ERA with estimators suggesting luck was on his side (5.80 FIP, 5.55 xERA). Any encouraging contact rates from his four starts in 2024 went the other way in 2025, when he was hammered for 11 home runs in 45 innings. An arm injury eventually cut short his season in August, but Fitts was throwing in November and is expected to have a normal offseason. He's a fastball/slider starter and may need to develop another pitch or locate better. In St. Louis, beyond Matthew Liberatore and Michael McGreevy, the Cardinals are looking to fill out the starting staff. Fitts, even with his fringy stuff, could easily grab one of those spots, possibly as the third in the rotation ahead of Andre Pallante, who disappointed in 2025. Read Past Outlooks