Cardinals: Writer proposes Jack Flaherty trade to Los Angeles Dodgers

A writer recently proposed that the St. Louis Cardinals should trade Jack Flaherty to the Los Angeles Dodgers.

The St. Louis Cardinals are unlikely to sign Jack Flaherty to an extension before or during the 2022 regular season. Previous negotiations, most notably their 2021 arbitration case, were hostile and reportedly led to a sour taste in the right-handers mouth.

So is there a chance that the Cardinals trade Flaherty?

On the surface, it doesn’t make sense – at least right now. Flaherty, 26, is the Cardinals’ ace alongside Adam Wainwright in 2022, which is arguably their most important season in years considering what’s at stake (Yadier Molina and Wainwright’s final season; Nolan Arenado opt-out decision). But Adam Weinrib of FanSided proposed a trade that would send Flaherty to the Los Angeles Dodgers.

The proposed trade would send one of Ryan Pepiot or Bobby Miller, along with Andy Pages and a “back-end, top-30 lottery ticket” prospect. So it would be three players for one. Pepiot is someone that scouts are very intrigued by – he could be a long-term pillar for the Cardinals’ rotation and offer cheap, long-term controllability that the organization covets (Flaherty, meanwhile, has two years left on his contract).

It’s an intriguing deal, but one the Cardinals won’t consider now, or any time during the 2022 season. It’s possible that talk of a Flaherty trade grows louder after this season, when he will be a year away from free agency and the team will have more options, including Matthew Liberatore, as part of their 2023 rotation.

But trading Flaherty now, when he’s such an important part of the rotation and entering the biggest season of his career, seems risky, especially since the Cardinals are searching for more pitching depth despite signing Steven Matz. Besides, Flaherty is their most talented pitcher – he posted a 3.22 ERA in 78.1 innings last season – and trading him weakens their chances of winning the World Series in 2022.

A Flaherty trade is something to keep in mind after the 2022 season. For now, however, a deal is not happening.