1 player the St. Louis Cardinals should steal from each division rival

Chicago Cubs: Kyle Hendricks

The Chicago Cubs traded away several key pieces to the club at the trade deadline. The club got a lot of young talent in those moves. The one remaining veteran player who has some intriguing is Kyle Hendricks.

At 32, Hendricks is in the middle of a four-year contract worth $55.5 million through 2023. He does have a vesting option in 2024.

Hendricks was 14-7 in 32 games pitched in 2022. He threw 181 innings, one complete game, and 131 strikeouts. He gave up 96 earned runs with 200 hits. This is partially due to the subpar defense surrounding  Hendricks with the Cubs.

Imagine how his numbers would improve with a Gold Glove-caliber defense behind him.

Hendricks primarily uses his sinker, curveball, and change-up. Hendrick’s four-seam fastball is his put-away pitch. While the pitches work for him, it would be interesting to see how that could change working with pitching coach Mike Maddux and catcher Yadier Molina. This duo generally likes to see a pitcher move those more off-speed pitches to a more sparing use and rely on a Gold Glove defense to get outs.

It would be incredibly doubtful to see the Cubs trade their ace to the Cardinals. But it’s a fun thought.