President of baseball operations John Mozeliak said Saturday that he imagines Hudson opening the season as a member of the big-league bullpen, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.
Hudson was viewed as one of many high-end starting prospects in the St. Louis farm system entering 2018, but the 24-year-old was deployed exclusively out of the bullpen upon getting the call to the majors shortly after the All-Star break. Relying heavily on his big fastball, Hudson accrued a 2.63 ERA and generated a 60.8 percent groundball rate across 27.1 innings, though a 19:18 K:BB and 1.35 WHIP limited his fantasy appeal. The Cardinals haven't closed the door on Hudson earning a look as a starter at some point -- in fact, Mozeliak said the righty would be on a starter's throwing program this spring -- but the organization's considerable rotation depth will relegate Hudson to a setup role for the time being.