Ranking the St. Louis Cardinals biggest X-Factors post-trade deadline

Honorable Mention: Jack Flaherty

It is easy to forget about the Cardinal ace lately, as Jack Flaherty has only pitched in 20 games since the beginning of 2021 and has had multiple set backs in his recovery over that time. With Flaherty beginning his rehab assignment and his return to the rotation not far away, Flaherty is perhaps the biggest wild card St. Louis has going for them.

To expect Flaherty to jump into the rotation and be the best version of himself would be a stretch, although it very well could happen. But if the 26-year old can remain healthy down the stretch for St. Louis, is it really that big of a stretch to think of him as a major upgrade over Dakota Hudson? Or provide critical innings out of the bullpen come October?

Don’t forget, when Flaherty is on, he matches up with anyone in the game. In his last full season in 2019, he has one of the best 2nd half performances in MLB history.

Even with battling injuries in 2021, Flaherty still posted a 3.22 ERA in 78.1 innings of work, and there is little reason to believe that a healthy version of the ace can’t at least replicate those numbers. If you add that to this much improved rotation, the club goes from a team that barely had two capable starting pitchers to a deep, five man rotation in a matter of weeks.

With the major uncertainty around his return from his injury, this makes Flaherty more of a wild card than true X-factor. Anything the club can get from their homegrown ace would be celebrated, it just so happens he has the ability to possibly be the biggest difference maker on this list.

No. 5: Yadier Molina

It is no secret how bad the Cardinals have been at catcher this season. It truly makes you appreciate the greatness of Yadier Molina that has been on display for so long, and he still has a bit of gas left in the tank to give this club down the stretch.

The Andrew Knizner experiment is clearly not sustainable more than spot starts. Ivan Herrera is a promising prospect but not quite ready yet for sustained MLB action. Perhaps the club could catch lighting in a bottle from depth catcher Austin Allen, who the Cardinals acquired at the deadline. But in all honesty, any production at or behind the plate must end up coming from the future Hall of Famer.

Molina has played in just 43 games this season, with a .502 OPS and has mostly looked overmatched offensively. Molina still possess well above average defensive ability and his leadership of a pitching staff is unmatched, making him extremely valuable to St. Louis, even if he is not producing at the plate.

It is no coincidence that since returning from the IL on August 2nd, the Cardinals have given up just 8 runs in 5 games, and there appears to be a jolt of energy and determination in the clubhouse. Molina remains the heartbeat of the Cardinals, and his leadership will help guide the club in big games, like Saturday night’s 1-0 nail biter over the Yankees.

Expect Molina to give it his all down the stretch, his final postseason push of his career. The team is thriving off of his presence, and it could put the club on a magical run.

No. 4: Nolan Gorman

There are three key ingredients to dynamic offenses – getting on base, power, and impact bats on both sides of the plate. Nolan Gorman has quietly become a guy who accomplishes all three takes for St. Louis in the last two weeks.

On the season, Gorman is slashing .238/.313/.450 with 12 HR and 26 RBI, and has gone on some hot streaks and ice cold stretches. Over the last 14 days though, his averages have creeped up to .257/.316/.543 and last 6 games has seen his OPS rise to .922. For a team that lacks power options from the left side of the plate, Gorman plays a critical rose in lineup construction down the stretch for St. Louis.

The 22-year old has the ability to change games with one swing of the bat, and his ability to draw walks has been a pleasant surprise for a rookie slugger. Although he still has not found consistent playing time against left handed pitching, his recent run of success may force the club to keep him in the lineup every day.

Lately, Gorman has found himself in the 2-hole for St. Louis, allowing him to see better pitches as guys like Goldschmidt and Arenado wait behind him. His ability to hit for power or get on base for the guys behind him is a key ingredient for St. Louis to compete with the best teams in baseball.

No. 3: Dylan Carlson

After having his name right in the thick of the Juan Soto trade rumors, Dylan Carlson has been risen to the occasion defensively and provided key hits for St. Louis in big moments. Yet, there is still another level, especially at the plate, that the Cardinals will need from their center fielder.

Over the last 20 games, Carlson is slashing .205./287/.672 with 2 HR and 9 RBI. The last 6 games have only gotten worse, with that line dropping to .080/.115/.240 as the primary leadoff man.

Carlson has more than proven himself to be an elite defensive center fielder that can make up for the loss of Harrison Bader. The Cardinals really need him to find his grove at the plate though, as the switch hitter is the club’s best lead off option currently and really transforms the lineup when he is on.

Carlson has been extremely impactful lately, even when his counting stats don’t show that. This makes him an even more valuable piece to the puzzle going forward. The more Carlson gets back on track, the more dangerous this Cardinal team becomes. St. Louis is pot committed to their young core, and Carlson is one of the biggest names they are banking on.

No. 2: Jordan Montgomery

After a shocking, buzzer beating deadline deal that sent Yankees’ lefty Jordan Montgomery to St. Louis for center fielder Harrison Bader, Montgomery has become one of the biggest pieces to the Cardinals puzzle down the stretch.

In 22 starts this season, Montgomery has thrown 119.2 innings with a 3.53 ERA, with the majority of those games coming in the difficult American League East for the Yankees. In his first start for St. Louis, he shut down his former team and one of the best lineups in baseball, going 5 innings while allowing just 3 base runners and no runs. He was removed from the game with leg cramps but proved he has what it takes to pitch on the biggest stage.

This series in easily the most important the Cardinals have played in all season, and the club set a stadium record for attendance with 48,581 present to watch the left hander deal on Saturday. 

Now St. Louis has Montgomery, Miles Mikolas, and Adam Wainwright to rely upon come post season time, as well as Jose Quintana and perhaps Flaherty. It is actually mind boggling how much better the Cardinals rotation got in just a weeks time. Montgomery gives the Cardinals the arm they need in big playoff series, something the club should be a part of now.

Big props have to go out to John Mozeliak and his team for pulling off one of the best deadlines in recent memory, which says a lot considering they were in conversations for Soto as well.

No. 1: Tyler O’Neill

Before the 2022 season, Tyler O’Neill was a dark horse candidate for MVP and looked primed to build upon his electric 2021, where the left fielder finished 8th in NL MVP voting after hitting .286/.352/.560 with 34 HR and 80 RBI and collecting his second career Gold Glove.

Injuries have plagued O’Neill all season long, limiting him to just 59 games and any time has has gotten back into a groove, he has ended up back on the IL. With that being said, the five tool outfielder still has it in him to make a major difference down the stretch, and is the biggest X-factor for St. Louis’ chances as a World Series contender.

Goldschmidt and Arenado have been incredible this season, but the club needs another top level bat to supplement their play in order to beat the best teams in baseball. Gorman and Carlson could surely help with that, but O’Neill has proven his ability to sustain superstar level play for long stretches at the plate.

If O’Neill can even be 60-75% of his 2021 self for the rest of 2022, the Cardinals have the ability to smack around their opponents pitching on a nightly basis. The Canadian’s mix of power, speed, and elite defense makes him a valuable piece of the St. Louis puzzle, and will be key to any serious push for a title in 2022.