Evaluating the St. Louis Cardinals as possible sellers
By Brett Ramsey
As the St. Louis Cardinals continue their rough stretch of baseball, it could be time to confront an uncomfortable truth. Maybe the team should consider being trade deadline sellers.
As the St. Louis Cardinals continue to struggle, their grip on the rope of contention is slowly starting to ease. At the time of this writing, the team sits a full eight games back from the division lead. They currently are in the midst of a stretch of games that see them playing some of the worst teams in baseball. As I recently wrote, this stretch was of utmost importance due to the fact that they have used their dominance over lesser opponents to keep them in playoff contention to this point.
There are still some games remaining against the Diamondbacks and Rockies in this stretch and the St. Louis Cardinals can turn things around and start winning. But what if they don’t?
It’s rare to look at the Cardinals as a potential trade deadline seller. In fact, in recent memory, the Cardinals have largely sat out at the trade deadline. However, it’s time to look at their current situation with clarity. At this point, this team does not seem worthy of a large trade deadline investment. It probably doesn’t make sense to trade prospects for a team with dwindling playoff odds. Yet, the Cardinals would benefit from some additions to show Nolan Arenado the team is committed to winning. What can be done?
Let’s take a look at some players who could be on the trade block in a possible “selling” scenario. Right now, frankly, there’s not a lot of trade assets that I can think of.
Andrew Miller: Andrew Miller has a no-trade clause, and hasn’t had a huge role for the Cardinals this season. A free agent as the end of the season, Miller might be open to a trade to a championship contender. He’s still a valuable pitcher and has something to offer for a team. His career playoff stats are eye-popping, and that could attract some suitors.
Tyler O’Neill: This one is difficult. Tyler O’Neill is so far having the best season of his career, with some good power numbers, and is also showing an improved batting eye. He also is showing some speed with a handful of stolen bases, is solid defensively and won a Gold Glove last season, and is not set to be a free agent until 2025. He’s showing that he could be a fit for the Cardinals long-term. However, injuries are still an issue with him at times and if the organization is even somewhat skeptical about his success this season, it makes a lot of sense to trade him while his value is this high.
John Gant: John Gant has spent this entire season to date in the starting rotation with mixed results. While his ERA was staying low, his underlying statistics were showing that it was a bit of smoke and mirrors. Gant is now back in the bullpen where he has found his greatest success. Some teams could be interested in Gant, the versatile pitcher who still has another season of club control next season.
Paul DeJong: Probably the biggest name I could see the Cardinals exploring in trade talks is Paul DeJong. This would be a classic case of selling low, but DeJong has struggled this season both before and after his injury. His contract is team-friendly and he still has above-average power, but the Cardinals plugged Edmundo Sosa into his place during his absence with an injury and didn’t miss a beat. I’m not sure what the market would be for DeJong but at this point I’m not sure he’s a part of the plan moving forward. Maybe I’m wrong, and it’s unlikely the team would be able to find the same production for the same price. But if DeJong is not a sure thing to be in the plans moving forward and the team wants to give Sosa a longer look, I could see him being dealt.
These are some names I could see making sense if the Cardinals explore selling assets at the trade deadline. There are others, depth pieces like Lane Thomas and maybe some bullpen arms like Junior Fernandez that could be included in trades. Thomas was expected to be a key depth piece for the Cardinals and it doesn’t seem to be happening. He seems like a good change of scenery candidate but probably has marginal trade value compared to the players listed above.
I could also be really bold and say the team should shop franchise icons Yadier Molina and Adam Wainwright. Wainwright, with the injury to Jack Flaherty, has been the team’s most reliable starting pitcher and would certainly have meaningful trade value to other teams. I don’t see a situation in which the Cardinals make them available, though.
Ultimately, this could all be a moot point. The Cardinals could start playing winning baseball and claw their way back into the playoff race. However, in the event that they don’t, it’s time to take a hard look at this roster and make some difficult decisions. The upcoming trade deadline could be the place to start.