The St. Louis Cardinals have been one of the most active teams in free agency due to its rebuild.

The Cardinals have traded and designated for assignment several players in the last year as they look to store assets for the future.

One of the players St. Louis acquired, then moved on from, this offseason has been reacquired by the team.

The Cardinals reportedly claimed right-handed reliever Zak Kent off waivers from the Texas Rangers.

The Rangers designated Kent for assignment Feb. 13.

Kent was added to the 40-man roster and third baseman Bryan Ramos was designated for assignment in a corresponding move.

This latest roster move is the latest in what has been a series of them for Kent.

The soon-to-be 28-year-old hurler was claimed by St. Louis off waivers by the Cleveland Guardians on Dec. 5; designated for assignment by the Cardinals on Jan. 6 and claimed off waivers by the Rangers on Jan. 9.

Kent was originally selected by Texas in the ninth round of the 2019 MLB Draft out of the Virginia Military Institute. He spent almost five years with the organization before he was traded to the Guardians on March 28, 2024, in return for cash.

Kent was briefly released by Cleveland on July 5, 2024, but was re-signed by the team on a minor league contract July 16, 2024.

The right-handed reliever got his first taste of major league action with the Guardians in 2025. He posted a 4.58 ERA and struck out 16 batters in 17.2 innings pitched across 12 appearances.

Across his minor league career across his time with the Rangers and Cleveland organizations, he had a 4.13 ERA and fanned 369 batters in 322.1 innings pitched across 117 outings (63 starts).

Barring an incredible performance in spring training, it seems like bringing back Kent is more for depth purposes rather than long-term major league plans.

According to FanGraphs' roster resource projections, the bullpen is currently expected to be comprised of right-handed pitchers: Gordon Graceffo, George Soriano, Matt Pushard, Ryne Stanek, Matt Svanson and Riley O'Brien and left-handers: Justin Bruihl and JoJo Romero. Only one of those pitchers, Graceffo, began his professional career with St. Louis.

This will not be the last transaction the Cardinals make the rest of the year, or even through the rest of spring, that affects the final spots on the 40-man roster.

However, there could be a role for Kent on the major league roster if he is able to put together an impressive spring.

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