St. Louis Cardinals: Cards might be close to trading for Alex Colome

Day two of the Winter Meetings didn’t heat up for the St. Louis Cardinals until very later last night thanks to social media.

It appears as if the search for a top-tier closer is coming to an end fairly soon for the St. Louis Cardinals. Late last night, a couple of astute Twitter and Instagram users noticed who Alex Colome recently followed in the last day. A majority of those accounts were related to the St. Louis Cardinals, prompting the question of whether he was on the move to St. Louis from Tampa Bay.

Speculation filled most of the day for Cardinal fans as word of a move for Marcell Ozuna was gaining traction. John Mozeliak also commented the team was “in the red zone” in regards to a possible trade.

However, there is just one thing missing.

Neither the St. Louis Cardinals or Tampa Bay Rays have announced any move for the right-handed closer. Rightfully so, many fans were unconvinced the Cardinals actually made the move for Colome. While Colome also responded to the news on Twitter, no official announcement won’t ease the mind of any Cardinal fan, especially after going through the Giancarlo Stanton fiasco.

So if the St. Louis Cardinals have indeed traded for Colome, what is holding up an announcement?

The first thing that comes to mind is the package going to Tampa Bay for the AL leader in saves in 2017. Earlier this off-season, I predicted if the Cardinals were to make a move for Colome, the team would be moving Randal Grichuk and one of the coveted pitching prospects they own. My guess was lefty Austin Gomber, but his name is not out there as much as Jack Flaherty, Dakota Hudson, or Sandy Alcantara.

It would be interesting to see how the Cardinals approach this trade scenario. Is it a buffet line and the Rays just pick from one of those three? Or do the Cardinals hold more value in any of those arms over the others?

The second thing that comes to mind on a possible hold up is additional pieces in a trade between the two teams. I think it is very clear Colome is definitely the main interest for the Cardinals, but could there be another player the Cardinals are trying to acquire in the same trade?

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Two potential names stick out for the team. The first would be Evan Longoria. His name has been tossed around quite a bit recently.

He is an immediate upgrade at the hot corner, and would help bridge the St. Louis lineup somewhat.

The incentive for the Rays to move him would be his contract and obvious value since the team does not appear close to another playoff run.

The second name is Chris Archer. While the Cardinals are mainly focused on adding a bat, the team also has kept their eyes on improving the team’s rotation.

Much like Longoria, Archer’s value is probably not going to be any higher than it is now moving forward. It makes sense for the Rays to shop him, and it makes even more sense for a team to acquire him based on his talent and contract.

However, with additional players involved, that only means more prospects on the way out. If it came to this point, Mozeliak and Co. would have to play a little chess with the Rays in order to secure the best deal possible.

I think the consensus would have to see the Cardinals sending at least two pitching prospects, Grichuk, and possibly an outfield prospect to retain Colome and one of the other two names I mentioned. the Cardinals would surely ask the Rays to cover some of the remaining deal on Longoria and possibly a portion of Colome’s arbitration deal.

The only other reason not to announce a deal is just simply because they have nothing to announce. Perhaps part of a trade a complete, but there is nothing set in stone. It’s possible that we are just trying to grasp at anything and everything we see at this point.

Next: Official Redbird Rants podcast episode 40

Since nothing is official, let’s not get our hopes up just yet. Until an official word is announced, speculation will continue to fill news feeds.