Inbox: Is lefty relief priority for Cardinals?

With the loss of Zach Duke for 2017, will the Cardinals pursue a left-handed reliever in the free-agent market or via trade? — Michael P., Lindsay, Calif.

The Cardinals will pursue relievers this offseason, though they won’t necessarily narrow that search to a left-handed one. The fact that the Cardinals already have lefty Kevin Siegrist as a late-inning arm and could plug Marco Gonzales, Tyler Lyons, Tim Cooney or Dean Kiekhefer into the ‘pen as additional left-handed options lessens that specific need.

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More important to the organization is finding a reliever who can, alongside Siegrist, help bridge the game to closer Seung Hwan Oh. The Cardinals are fortunate that the reliever market projects to be among the strongest in free agency.

I don’t understand the Cardinals not picking up Matt Holliday’s option for $17 million while they consider making Brandon Moss a qualifying offer. What gives? — Sean C., Dayton, Wash.

Though the value of the two one-year deals — $17 million on Holliday’s option, $17.2 million for a qualifying offer — are essentially a wash, there are some varying factors in play. If the Cardinals believe that Moss is interested in seeking a multiyear deal — perhaps the last significant one of his career — they may take the gamble of making him a qualifying offer, expecting Moss to turn it down. If that were the case, the Cardinals would then net a compensatory Draft pick upon Moss’ departure.

Of course, that comes with a risk. If a qualifying offer were made and Moss accepts it, there is no wiggle-out option for St. Louis.

But having Moss back next season, even at that price tag, would not preclude the Cardinals from addressing their other offseason needs appropriately, so it wouldn’t be a devastating development. You have to consider, too, that having Moss, 33, under contract for …

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