Yadier Molina Reportedly Expected to Re-Sign with Cardinals on 1-Year Contract

The St. Louis Cardinals and catcher Yadier Molina are expected to reach an agreement on a new contract. 

Per MLB Network's Jon Morosi, Molina is expected to re-sign with Cardinals "after the Caribbean Series, if not before then."

Morosi noted that Puerto Rican newspaper El Nuevo Dia was the first to report the Cardinals offered Molina a one-year contract that "he's likely to sign soon."

Molina is a franchise legend who helped lead the Cards to World Series titles in 2006 and 2011. His career resume, which will likely land him in the Hall of Fame, also includes nine All-Star Game appearances, nine Gold Glove Awards, a Silver Slugger Award and a Roberto Clemente Award.

The 38-year-old Puerto Rico native became a free agent after the 2020 season. He has spent his entire MLB career, which started in 2004, with the Redbirds.

"I also said that if the Cardinals want me, that's the only team I want to play for," Molina told Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch last January. "So, it's still like that too. If they want me. If they want to move apart, that's it for me."

In his last few seasons, Molina wasn't the offensive threat he was during his prime—he posted an OPS over .810 in three straight years from 2011 through 2013—but he remained a solid secondary contributor at the plate.

He compiled a .270 average with 10 home runs and six stolen bases across 113 appearances that year. He recorded a lackluster .662 OPS in 2020, though.

Much the same can be said about his defense. Once one of MLB's premier backstops, he now rates in the middle of the pack defensively.

Yadi finished 32nd in runs saved from extra strikes, per Baseball Savant—a pitch-framing metric—and tied for 33rd in defensive runs saved, per FanGraphs, during MLB's last full season in 2019.

That said, Molina's value to the Cardinals goes beyond his mostly average statistical production. His clubhouse leadership and experience in key moments is invaluable to a championship contender.

An extension always felt like a mere formality as a result, though it won't stop St. Louis from continuing the plan of the future of the position in the years ahead.

For now, Molina and Andrew Knizner will share catching duties for 2021.