John Lackey’s 2015 MLB Minimum Contract Could Be Reworked By Cardinals


ST. LOUIS — The Cardinals have John Lackey at a bargain price next season, but they might be willing to sweeten the deal.

Cardinals general manager John Mozeliak said Wednesday he’d meet with Lackey’s agent at the Major League Baseball winter meetings next week in San Diego.

“I wouldn’t rule anything out there,” Mozeliak said.

Lackey’s contract calls for a $500,000 salary next season — the major league minimum — because he missed the 2012 season while recovering from reconstructive elbow surgery. The 36-year-old right-hander just completed a five-year, $82.5 million contract he signed with Boston.

Lackey was traded from the Red Sox to the Cardinals in July. He went a combined 14-10 with a 3.83 ERA in 31 regular-season starts, and then was 1-0 in two postseason starts for the NL Central champion Cardinals.

Thumbnail photo via Scott Rovak/USA TODAY Sports Images