BREAKING: St. Louis Cardinals acquire Matthew Liberatore from Rays

In a trade that came completely out of nowhere, the St. Louis Cardinals have acquired Matthew Liberatore from the Rays. Who is he and what does this mean?

While the whole city of St. Louis drooled over the thought of Nolan Arenado in a St. Louis Cardinals jersey, John Mozeliak was seemingly at work.

In a trade from out of left field, the Cardinals have acquired left-handed pitching prospect Matthew Liberatore from the Tampa Bay Rays.

This seems so odd because there was no buildup from any of this, it just happened. Let me tell you why this trade is so great though.

Well-regarded pitching prospect Matt Liberatore has been traded from the Tampa Bay Rays to the St. Louis Cardinals, sources familiar with the deal tell ESPN. It's part of a trade expected to send major league pieces back to Tampa Bay, which has been searching for outfield bats.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) January 9, 2020

By “Well-regarded,” Jeff Passan is referring to the fact that Liberatore was the #41 prospect in all of baseball. The left-hander projects as a #2 starter, meaning he is the real deal, top-of-the-rotation talent that the Cardinals have missed from their system in the past few years.

Liberatore is 20 years old and was drafted 16th overall in the 2018 MLB Draft and pitched in Single-A in 2019 with a 3.10 ERA and just two homers allowed in 78.1 innings.

We can dig deeper into Liberatore later, but right now, the big question is about what the Cardinals are going to be giving up for Liberatore. A stingy team like the Rays won’t give up a highly-touted pitcher easy, and as Passan noted, it’s MLB pieces going back to Tampa Bay.

Pitching prospect Matt Liberatore going to cardinals in trade from Rays. STL extra OFs Tyler O’Neill and Jose Martinez were discussed. Possible 1 or both are going to Rays.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) January 9, 2020

It’s not confirmed yet and we will update the piece when it is, but right away it looks like Tyler O’Neill and/or Jose Martinez are going to be involved. In my eyes, that is an easy and resounding yes. O’Neill has never been given the playing time and Martinez fits better in the AL with the DH anyways. Heyman also mentioned that Harrison Bader could be included.

UPDATE:

The St. Louis Cardinals are trading OF Jose Martinez, OF Randy Arozarena and a Compensation A pick (after 1st round) to the Tampa Bay Rays for LHP prospect Matt Liberatore, a low-level catching prospect and Compensation B pick (post-2nd), sources familiar with the deal tell ESPN.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) January 10, 2020

Hard to see Jose Martinez and Randy Arozarena go, but for Liberatore and what he may do or get for the Cardinals, transferring outfield depth to him and a catching prospect is a huge win. Still love the trade from Mo. As far as the picks go, that was an extra first-round pick, now it just drops to the second round. Great work all around.

I will add that it’s gonna be sad to see Randy A tear it up in Tampa, but hopefully the Cards will either get Arenado or Liberatore will flourish.
— Redbird Rants (@FSRedbirdRants) January 10, 2020

Next. Report: Nolan Arenado trade seems ‘inevitable’. dark

A 6-5 left-handed starter who is a top-50 prospect in baseball is never a bad thing to have, especially when you get him dealing from a place of surplus in the form of MLB-ready outfielders. Fantastic job Mozeliak.

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