5 shortstop trade options the St. Louis Cardinals should consider

Didi Gregorius, Philadelphia Phillies

The Philadelphia Phillies are enduring a long playoff drought, and they’ve spent big the last few off-seasons as they attempt to end that dry spell.  One player they’ve allocated relatively small sums to the last few years is Didi Gregorius, who has been steady if not spectacular in the City of Brotherly Love.

The Positive: Gregorius isn’t as good as Bogaerts or Swanson, providing roughly average hitting and below-average defense.  His desirability doesn’t jump off the page, but his track record is long and fairly steady.

One thing that could work in the pursuit of Gregorius is availability.  Even if the Phillies are competing for playoff position in July, they might be doing so with rookie Bryson Stott as their starting shortstop.  If that’s the case, Gregorius most likely could be had for a song.

The Negative: While the acquisition price would be low in terms of talent, his $15.25M salary is rather high.  Maybe a balance of funds coming from Philadelphia and better prospect going from St. Louis could make this palatable for both teams.

The Complicated: What if the Phillies are contending, but Stott hasn’t overtaken Gregorius for the starting gig?  Well, it would be tough for Philly to send away their No. 1 shortstop.  There’s a lot of wait-and-see to this deal, too.