Why the St. Louis Cardinals May Trade for Shohei Ohtani

The St. Louis Cardinals are positioned to trade for anyone in baseball, and may be big players for Shohei Ohtani, who would fill their greatest needs.

The St. Louis Cardinals are in the thick of trade rumors across league circles. Whether it is for a generational bat like Juan Soto or frontline starter like Frankie Montas, it looks like the club searching far and wide for big upgrades to the club. But what if they decided to get a generational talent who could help their lineup and solve their pitching woes?

Enter Shohei Ohtani.

First, yes, Ohtani being on the move is a real possibility. The New York Mets have contacted the Angels about his availablity, and Mike Trout’s recent back diagnosis, which may effect him the rest of his career, has created a buzz in league circles about the two-way superstar being on the move.

If you pay attention to how these big stories develop, it usually begins with smoke, and where there is smoke, there tends to be fire. As the August 2nd deadline gets closer, it is likely we will see Ohtani’s name ramp up on the market.

Why would the Angels even consider trading Ohtani? First, the team is in the need of a massive rebuild, and trading Ohtani would jump start that process in a way few others, if any in baseball, can match. Second, the phenom is set to hit free agency after 2023 and is in the midst of a MVP and Cy Young type of season, making his value higher than it’ll ever be. Third, Ohtani has been rumored to be unhappy for awhile, and it is likely he leaves on the open market.

Just like the Soto sweepstakes, the Cardinals are positioned as well as anyone in baseball to acquire Ohtani, but in the case of the Angels star, he would fill both their greatest need and their greatest want this deadline. As trade talks heat up, St. Louis will surely be one of the teams calling about the once in a lifetime player.

Here is why the Cardinals should trade for Ohtani, and just what it may cost them to do so.

Shohei Ohtani will requires a Soto like package, and maybe more

Any trade for Shohei Ohtani would cost a fortune for St. Louis, and the conversation would have to begin with top prospect Jordan Walker.

It’s hard to imagine a scenario where Walker is not included in any deal. The Angels will stress that the Cardinals are acquiring one of the best pitchers in all of baseball and one of the best hitters in the game. Getting both in the same package in the form of Ohtani will require the club’s best If St. Louis could somehow avoid giving up Walker, then the package would be even more loaded.

It’s hard to approximate Ohtani’s value, but when speculating a package, I would assume they would ask for the following. Jordan Walker, two of Nolan Gorman and Maysn Winn, and two or three of Matthew Liberatore, Michael McGreevy, and Tink Hence. The Angels could potentially replace Walker with Carlson in such a deal, but again, Walker would be their preference.

Due to how thin their farm system is, the Angels would be interested in a package that includes a quantity of prospects we’ve never seen in a baseball trade before, that instead of being centered on Walker or Carlson, focuses on Winn and Gorman with 6-7 other prospects joining them. Our own Ben Remis just wrote about the insane amount of depth St. Louis has organizationally just in the outfield, and multiple other places on the diamond are now reflecting that as well.

Whether it is a top heavy deal with some of St. Louis’ greatest assets, a large package focused on replenishing the Angels farm system as a whole, or a little bit of both, St. Louis has the firepower to make that kind of deal, still be contenders, and have a bright future ahead of them.