Grading the St. Louis Cardinals trade deadline moves

The St. Louis Cardinals were in the thick of many different rumors throughout July, and pulled off a few deals. How do all of these moves grade?

The trade deadline was an eventful one for the St. Louis Cardinals, as the club pulled off three different trades, and missed out on the biggest deal not only of the deadline, but perhaps MLB history.

Like very trade deadline, media and fans begin to give grades to different moves, and make conclusions about how the club fared and where they are going the rest of this season. While it is unfair to truly grade moves, especially with season left to play and the unknown of what prospects will become, it is a helpful exercise for all involved.

The three deals the Cardinals made all looked to improve the clubs pitching staff. The starting rotation, bullpen, and organizational depth were all improved for a low output, meaning the club was able to fill their biggest need and not strip their trade chips to do so.

There was a lot the club did not do as well though. They did not match the Nationals asking price in the Juan Soto sweepstakes, and they did not put in the pieces necessary to acquire the top arms on the trade market. If you replay this deadline 100 times, the Cardinals would come out with Soto, a bigger arm, or other items in some of those scenarios, but the most likely ended to the deadline was always what ended up happening.

While the final analysis of these deals will not happen for a few years, it is time to go ahead and give grades to each of the trades that St. Louis made at the 2022 trade deadline.

Trade Grade: A-

The Cardinals second move was a really important one for the club, grabbing both an impactful veteran starter and high upside reliever for two youngsters who probably were not in the club’s long term plans.

Jose Quintana was a move I speculated for St. Louis due to his low price point and success against clubs that St. Louis will be competing with down the stretch. Quintana owns a 3.50 ERA on a bad Pirates team, and likely will find even more success on a contender and in front of a top tier defense. The left hander fills one of the two open spots that the Cardinals have in their rotation after injuries have hit them hard this year.

Stratton has not been very good in 2022 according to traditional stats, as he has a 4.97 ERA in 41.2 innings for Pittsburgh before being dealt to St. Louis. His FIP though indicates major improvements on the horizon, as it sat at 3.61 this season. In front of St. Louis’ defense, Stratton should also benefit greatly, and also benefit from being one cog in a deep bullpen.

Giving up Johan Oviedo and Malcom Nunez is notable, but neither appear to have long term futures in St. Louis. Oviedo had struggled greatly in the rotation but found success as a reliever for the club. Nunez is blocked by the wealth of corner infield and DH talent in the organization, making both players expendable for these major upgrades.

Trade Grade: B+

The final move that St. Louis made came down to the wire for the club, and involved trading away center fielder Harrison Bader, which was a huge surprise to many people. The price for parting with Bader was worth it though, as the club acquired another good left handed pitcher for their rotation that was in desperate need.

Jordan Montgomery is a good pitcher. Pitching in the best division in baseball, Montgomery has managed to maintain a 3.69 ERA in 114.2 innings of work, and would likely benefit a ton from Busch Stadium and the Cardinal defense. The 29-year old left is someone the club could start in a playoff game this year, which could only be comfortably said about two of the club’s current starters.

Montgomery also provides long term value as well, being under team control for the 2023 season. St. Louis was able to trade away from a position of strength to fill a hole in both their current and future rotation.

Bader was a fan favorite in St. Louis, earning his first Gold Glove in 2021 and providing elite speed and defense for the club that was contagious. But with the emergence of Dylan Carlson in center field, Bader’s injury and still a month away from a return, and impending free agency, he was a clear trade piece if the club could find the right pitcher, and they found that.

Bader will slot in great in the New York outfield and will be missed by Cardinal fans, but Montgomery is far more valuable to the club as this moment that Bader is.

The ‘No” Trade Grade: Incomplete

While the Cardinals remained in the mix throughout the whole process, St. Louis ended up letting Washington know they would not meet their asking price for Juan Soto, eventually leading to a historic package from the Padres being dealt to Washington for Soto.

This trade will remain incomplete for awhile for many reasons. First, one can make a strong case for and against the Soto deal for St. Louis. The Cardinals had enough assets to beat the Padres trade offer, and still maintain a good, but maybe not great, farm system. Adding a generational bat to Goldschmidt and Arenado would have made the Cardinals the most feared lineup in baseball.

On the other hand, not trading for Soto and addressing the pitching needs still improved the club’s chances in 2022 while keeping an extremely bright future, and trade flexibility, for years to come. The club has an incredible mix of veteran stars, young MLB talent, and top prospects that could help St. Louis compete for the World Series for many years.

If and when more superstars hit the trade market, St. Louis is now clearly the best positioned team to make a move. So if Mike Trout, Shohei Ohtani, or any other stars end up being on the block, St. Louis could acquire them for less than what Soto required, and probably even get a bit of a bargain since no one could compete with their offers.

Currently, St. Louis probably loves their club’s future. But if Soto leads San Diego to a World Series, or even just proves to be a major upgrade while the Cardinals young core disappoints, all eyes would be on John Mozeliak for not pulling the trigger.