The St. Louis Cardinals officially offered free agent outfielder Matt Holliday a contract according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

The article states that St. Louis expects to hear back from Holliday within the next 48 hours and that the Cardinals might move on “the middle of next week” if the free agent doesn’t accept their offer.

While Holliday is a much-needed presence in the Cards’ lineup, it’s important for the club and GM John Mozeliak to move in another direction if the outfielder can’t make a quick decision. The financial terms of the offer haven’t been released, but chances are it’s a fair deal for market value. I doubt the Cards would waste their or Holliday’s time with a lowball offer.

If Holliday doesn’t sign, it’ll be interesting to see if the Cardinals make a run at Jason Bay, although it would be tough for St. Louis to match an offer from the Red Sox or Mariners. (There’s a rumor floating around that Bay wants to play for the M’s because Seattle is close to his home.)

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