St. Louis Cardinals: 3 soon-to-be free agent outfielders to keep an eye on

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - APRIL 14: Michael Conforto #30 of the New York Mets drops his bat running to first during the sixth inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citi Field on April 14, 2021 in the Queens borough of New York City. (Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - APRIL 14: Michael Conforto #30 of the New York Mets drops his bat running to first during the sixth inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citi Field on April 14, 2021 in the Queens borough of New York City. (Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images)
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Michael Conforto is a good OF candidates for the St Louis Cardinals
Michael Conforto, Mets Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

Why the St Louis Cardinals should keep an eye on Michael Conforto

Michael Conforto is a 28-year old corner outfielder with the New York Mets. The left-handed bat has a career slash line of .258/.358/.480 with an OPS+ of 127.

Since 2017, Conforto has shown himself to be a consistent middle-of-the-order bat, just what the Cardinals need to complement Nolan Arenado and Paul Goldschmidt. Conforto hit 27 homers with 68 RBI in 2017 in just 109 games, 28 homers with 82 RBI in 132 games in 2018, and 33 homers with 93 RBI in 141 games during 2019.

The former first-round pick is on a one-year $12.25 million contract in 2021. The question becomes will the Mets be willing to move him at the trade deadline or even let him walk after the season?

I exchanged the idea of Michael Conforto being a trade deadline target or an offseason target for the Cardinals with Ben Cerutti of Birds on the Black. Ben told me he likes Conforto, along with another Mets outfielder, Brandon Nimmo. Still, he doesn’t think the Mets will move Conforto at the trade deadline, especially if they are still in the playoff chase. But he added, “as a free agent it makes a lot of sense.”

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