5 best moves made by the late St. Louis Cardinals general manager Walt Jocketty

4. Trading for third baseman Scott Rolen (2002)

It says a lot when the fourth-best move by a general manager was acquiring a player who won four Gold Gloves, a Silver Slugger award, and went to five All-Star games as a Cardinal. That's just how good Walt Jocketty was at his job.

Jocketty traded for Scott Rolen from the Philadelphia Phillies at the 2002 trade deadline for Placido Polanco, Mike Timlin, and Doug Smith. Polanco played just over three years with the Phillies, and he wasn't as successful in Philadelphia as he was in St. Louis. Neither Timlin nor Doug Smith were good players outside of St. Louis. From a pure trade perspective, Jocketty won this trade by a landslide.

Scott Rolen's best season came in 2004 with the Cardinals. He slashed .314/.409/.598 that year to go along with 34 home runs and 124 runs batted in. He finished fourth in MVP voting behind Albert Pujols, Adrian Beltre, and Barry Bonds, and his 9.0 fWAR total that year was third behind only Beltre Barry Bonds.

Rolen's elite defense at the hot corner was unmatched during his era. He solidified one of the best eras of Cardinal baseball with his stout defense and middle-of-the-bat offense. Rolen's inclusion on what became known as the "MV3" speaks to his prowess.

In only six seasons with the Cardinals, Rolen accrued 25.9 bWAR, and his .286/.370/.510 slash line was fantastic. He played on the 2006 World Series champion team and the 2004 National League pennant team. Rolen was a part of four National League Central championship teams. Without Jocketty's trade to get Rolen and Rolen's efforts on the roster, the Cardinals wouldn't have been as successful in the early 2000s as they were.

Rolen was inducted into the St. Louis Cardinals Hall of Fame in 2019, and he became a National Baseball Hall of Fame inductee in 2023. His name is etched into baseball history forever now. He will also be remembered fondly as a Cardinal thanks to his success with the club. Walt Jocketty is the man to thank for bringing one of the best third basemen in baseball history to St. Louis.