St. Louis Cardinals: Acquiring a big bat or not at the trade deadline

The St. Louis Cardinals are just five days away from the trade deadline. For the last month and a half, much of the speculation is on acquiring a big bat.

There is no shortage of rumors when it comes to the St. Louis Cardinals this trade deadline. Talk of a big name bat continues to dominate the Cardinals’ landscape, as everyone awaits a move from the team. Every single second fans are checking Twitter to see what the latest news about the team is.

However, if you looked through Twitter today, you may not have found the most welcoming news. Earlier today, on the Kevin Wheeler Show, St. Louis Cardinals’ insider, Jennifer Langosch, commented on the team’s biggest question at the trade deadline: Will the Cardinals find a big bat?

According to Langosch, the Cardinals are more likely to pursue a big bat in the off-season than this year’s trade deadline. While most of us are hoping for the big bat now, this type of sentiment has lurked in the shadows for the last couple of weeks.

Hearing Langosch reaffirm those sentiments shared by Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and Bob Nightengale of USA Today, cast an even bigger cloud of the team at the trade deadline.

.@LangoschMLB doesn’t expect the #STLCards to get the big bat at the deadline, but there could be moves to give the roster more clarity.— Kevin Wheeler Show (@WheelerShow101) July 26, 2017.@LangoschMLB doesn’t expect the #STLCards to get the big bat at the deadline, but there could be moves to give the roster more clarity.— Kevin Wheeler Show (@WheelerShow101) July 26, 2017

Earlier this month, Derrick Goold commented on the pursuit of a big bat. Goold believes if the search for a big bat still persisted, it wouldn’t be until the final week or days of the trade deadline. Well, here we are. The clock is ticking. I went on to elaborate on Goold’s comments, asking whether the Cardinals could stay pat.

I concluded that if the St. Louis Cardinals do indeed stay pat, it is due to the lack of options on the table and they believe they can win with the team they have now. Unfortunately, if you have watched games this year, you know that’s not the case, thanks to the bullpen. However, Langosch believes there is still time for a move to fix the bullpen.

Related Story: Questions on the pusuit of a big bat

Langosch went on to say in her comments that she believes the Cardinals could make a deal for a controllable bullpen piece. If that is the case, would it effectively end the pursuit of a big bat this season? I’m not too sure it would completely end the search at the deadline, but it would make it a lot harder considering what they would give up for the bullpen piece.

I am going to go out on a limb and say the Cardinals will trade Randal Grichuk for a controllable bullpen piece. Maybe some one like Justin Wilson or Zach Britton will be in a Cardinals’ uniform by next week. Detroit just gave up J.D. Martinez, so a move for Grichuk doesn’t sound terrible. Even then, though, the Cardinals are still without the big bat needed in the lineup.

As I mentioned earlier, Bob Nightengale aslo made comments on the Kevin Wheeler Show in regards to the search for a big bat. While on the Kevin Wheeler Show, he echoed this same sentiment as Langosch and Goold. Nightengale believes the St. Louis Cardinals need a big bat, but doesn’t know who they would acquire. This was yet another reason to be skeptical on the pursuit of the big bat.

Related Story: Questions on the pursuit of a big bat part two

Like Langosch, Nightengale suggests the Cardinals may make a move in the winter. Again, this points to the Cardinals staying pat in the pursuit of a big bat this trade deadline. After reading those comments, I made the point to suggest that if the Cardinals were going to wait till winter for a big bat, then they should sell the pieces they can now for controllable players in the future.

It seems like the St. Louis Cardinals dipped into that territory with the trade of Marco Gonzales, but what’s stopping them for doing anything else? Lance Lynn, Tommy Pham, and Michael Wacha, are some of the names I would certainly float around to other teams for future pieces. Maybe the controllable piece comes out of those three names.

The St. Louis Cardinals are in control of their own destiny when it comes to the pursuit of the big bat. They have their last two games and look finish off the sweep of the Rockies tonight. If they win tonight, and take two from the Diamondbacks, would that be enough to heighten the search for a big bat? I guess it would depend on the standings in the Central, but I still think it is a winnable division.

If the Cardinals do indeed decide to not get a big bat this trade deadline, then they need to sell while they can. It makes no sense for the Cardinals to completely stay pay this trade deadline when the team can acquire long-term assets in the end.

If I had to guess, I am following the words of the three reporters I mentioned throughout the article. I don’t think the Cardinals will find their bat this trade deadline. It will disappoint some fans, but I think we need to be realistic about the chances the Cardinals have in the playoffs. Fellow writer, Dr. Miles, thinks the Cardinals should stay pat. I think I am right there with him.

Next: A week till the trade deadline

What do you think? Based on the comments above, it seems like the Cardinals won’t make the move many of us desire. However, depending on how the rest of the week goes, it may change by the time July 31st rolls around.