A lot of hot stove handicappers were assuming that the Cardinals would re-sign free agent Jake Westbrook this offseason because apparently Dave Duncan liked him, Westbrook responded well enough to the change in scenery and it’s not hard to see him pitching well in St. Louis over the next couple of years. That thinking may no longer be operative, according to Ken Rosenthal, who reports that the Cardinals’ talks with Westbrook “seem to have lost momentum.”
Apparently the sticking point is that Westbrook wants more than a two-year deal, and the Cards are less-inclined to give him one. Given that, after Cliff Lee, the free agent pitching market isn’t any great shakes, it seems likely that Westbrook could get a three-year deal -- which is kind of the going contract length for a middlin'-to-above-average starter these days -- elsewhere. Milwaukee would probably jump at him, as would a lot of other teams looking to solidify the staff.
As for the Cardinals, their fourth starter’s position may very well continue to be a revolving door.