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Cardinals Rumors: St. Louis Interested in Frankie Montas

By Josh Jacobs |
OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA - JULY 21: Frankie Montas #47 of the Oakland Athletics pitches in the top of the second inning against the Detroit Tigers during game two of a doubleheader at RingCentral Coliseum on July 21, 2022 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images)
OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA - JULY 21: Frankie Montas #47 of the Oakland Athletics pitches in the top of the second inning against the Detroit Tigers during game two of a doubleheader at RingCentral Coliseum on July 21, 2022 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images)
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The rumors keep flying in for the St. Louis Cardinals as the trade deadline quickly approaches, with Oakland Athletics starter Frankie Montas being the latest arm that the club is discussing acquiring.

According to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (subscription required), the Cardinals and Yankees are two of the main teams looking into Montas, with other teams inquiring as well.

Montas has been a long-rumored target for St. Louis, stemming back to the fire sale that Oakland put on this offseason. Although he has been experiencing shoulder inflammation as of late, he still has a 3.18 ERA in 104.2 innings of work this season, making the right-hander a prime candidate to upgrade the St. Louis rotation.

Out of all of the rumored names on the market, Montas has always seemed to be the starter most likely moved before August 2nd. As the A’s continue to tear down their major league roster and retool their farm system, Montas is their most valuable piece remaining, and may never hold as much value as he does right now.

While there are other names that seem to be available on the market, with so many teams needing pitching help, Montas will likely come at a high price for any potential suitors. Montas has been a very productive pitcher and has one more year of club control remaining, making him more than just a stretch-run rental for St. Louis.

St. Louis’ need for starting pitching is so glaring right now that they are linked to almost every pitcher on the market, but it appears there is a greater level of interest in Montas than most others on the market for the Cardinals. Here is why the Cardinals must strongly consider acquiring the Athletics ace.

OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA – JULY 26: Frankie Montas #47 of the Oakland Athletics pitches in the top of the first inning against the Houston Astros at RingCentral Coliseum on July 26, 2022 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images)
OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA – JULY 26: Frankie Montas #47 of the Oakland Athletics pitches in the top of the first inning against the Houston Astros at RingCentral Coliseum on July 26, 2022 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images) /

Frankie Montas transforms the St. Louis Cardinals’ rotation

In baseball, the impact of one player on a roster is greatly diminished compared to other sports like the NBA or NFL. You can play a perfect game, but if the rest of your team is not producing, it is hard to win ball games. But when there is a glaring need, sometimes the addition of one name can make a catalytic change for a club.

Montas can be that guy for St. Louis in 2022 and 2023. At this moment, the rotation is barely holding itself together, relying heavily on Adam Wainwright and Miles Mikolas to provide top end outings each and every time they take the hill. Andre Pallante is doing a great job buying time for the club, but he is best suited as a reliever this year. Dakota Hudson may return soon from injury, but starters Steven Matz and Jack Flaherty are out for at least the foreseeable future.

Trading for Montas would give the Cardinals three legit top-end starters for the stretch run. There is so much pressure on Mikolas and Wainwright each outing to go deep into games, the lineup to mash to make up for bad pitching, and the bullpen to eat large amounts of innings to hold the club over. Adding Montas first takes a huge burden off so many players in the Cardinals clubhouse, and allows players to shift back into more comfortable roles.

Think about how much of an impact names like Jon Lester and J.A. Happ made on the Cardinals last season. Having guys in the roles you need them in goes a long way towards helping the production of a ball club.

Instead of acting as a No. 3 starter, Pallante could revert back to the bullpen, or truly operate as the back-end starter role he is more suited for at this early juncture of his career. When Hudson returns, he too can just go out and pitch, not worrying about playing above his capacity.

If and when Matz or Flaherty return, they do not immediately need to be the saviors of the rotation, but can easy back into play and help the club in whatever ways they can.

Come October, the Cardinals would then have a front line of Montas, Mikolas, and Wainwright to roll out in each series, meaning they can stack up with some of the best rotations in baseball and not just hope to survive, but truly compete with their pitching.

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JUNE 28: Frankie Montas #47 and Sean Murphy #12 of the Oakland Athletics walk to the dugout from the bullpen before the start of the game against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium on June 28, 2022 in New York City. (Photo by Dustin Satloff/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JUNE 28: Frankie Montas #47 and Sean Murphy #12 of the Oakland Athletics walk to the dugout from the bullpen before the start of the game against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium on June 28, 2022 in New York City. (Photo by Dustin Satloff/Getty Images) /

Sean Murphy could come to St. Louis Cardinals as well

The other glaring need for St. Louis this season comes at the catcher position. Even with future Hall of Famer Yadier Molina returning soon, it is clear that the club needs another option to keep Molina fresh and give above-league average production at the plate and behind the dish.

In a recent trade speculation article, Dylan Svoboda proposed the Cardinals acquiring both Montas and catcher Sean Murphy from Oakland for Matthew Liberatore, Masyn Winn, and Luken Baker While this may seem like a high price to pay, getting a controllable front-line starter and starting catcher for the next few seasons is a huge boost to the club. Winn and Liberatore are tough pills to shallow, but the organization has so much prospect depth that it’s time to cash that in for big league talent.

Murphy is one of the best defensive catchers in baseball at the moment, and his .767 OPS would be a huge upgrade over anything the Cardinals have received behind the plate this season. Pair that with the great starts that Montas can provide St. Louis down the stretch, and they go from winning to division by getting Montas to World Series contenders as a complete team.

Even if the club just acquires Montas, that would be a huge boost to their ability to compete with the other contenders in the National League. Expanding the deal to include Murphy as well, should the club be serious about making the World Series.

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