When pitchers and catchers report to the Cardinals spring training facility in Jupiter, Fla., next week, a familiar face will be there.
In a video message posted on his Instragram account on Monday night, Yadier Molina said, “I’m back.”
The post came as several media outlets were reporting that the Cardinals and Molina were finalizing a one-year agreement. The Cardinals later confirmed the agreement on their official Twitter account.
Molina’s agent and the Cardinals had been working on an agreement before Molina left Puerto Rico last week to represent his country in the Caribbean Series in Mexico, which concluded over the weekend. The team had expressed optimism that an agreement would be reached early this week.
Molina, 38, became a free agent for the first time in his career after the 2020 season. He had said that he wanted to sign a two-year contract but the Cardinals had been steadfast in offering only a one-year deal.
Both Molina and Adam Wainwright, who recently agreed to come back for this season under a one-year deal, had talked often about wanting to make sure they stayed together this season. The two have been teammates since 2005.
Even before Molina technically became a free agent last fall, manager Mike Shildt publicly lobbied for the Cardinals to re-sign the nine-time Gold Glove winner and nine-time All-Star.
