5 potential trade locations for St. Louis Cardinals Brendan Donovan

As the St. Louis Cardinals enter a period of development and internal development, the need for prospects and long-term players is growing. This has led to ample speculation that the Cardinals will be active players in the trade market during the Hot Stove season.

The Cardinals have several players who could be appealing to other teams including Nolan Arenado, Sonny Gray, and Alec Burleson. Nolan Gorman, Lars Nootbaar, and Alec Burleson will also receive interest. However, the most appealing trade chip that the Cardinals have this winter may be their lone All-Star from this past year: Brendan Donovan.

Brendan Donovan has consistently produced since making it to the majors. He has a career .282/.361/.411 slash line for a 117 OPS+. He's been able to hit for power at times during his career, and his on-base percentage ranks in the top 15 of all qualified hitters since 2022.

Donovan won a Gold Glove at the utility position in 2022, and he was an All-Star last year. Donnie is projected to receive around $6 million in arbitration this year. Oh, and he's under team control through the 2027 season. The list of teams wanting Donovan's services would be lengthy.

If the Cardinals want to jumpstart their return to glory, trading Brendan Donovan at peak value would be a great way to bring in high-end prospects to beef up an improving farm system. Should St. Louis trade Donovan, Chaim Bloom could net at least one top-100 prospect and a couple of other players near MLB-ready.

Seeing Brendan Donovan go would be difficult to swallow, as he's become a fan favorite over the years. However, trading him may be a necessary move to help fix the Cardinals' organizational woes.

The list of teams looking to add an All-Star utility man with above-average offensive production before he turns 30 won't be short. Therefore, the bidding war for Brendan Donovan could get hot, only increasing the return the Cardinals could get for him. While several teams will inquire, only a few teams feel like true fits.

These 5 teams look like excellent matches for a Brendan Donovan trade.

Cleveland Guardians

The Cleveland Guardians have already been mentioned as an ideal candidate to land Brendan Donovan. Their production from the second base and corner outfield positions was well below average last year, and they've been desperate for offensive help for several years.

Inserting Brendan Donovan into a lineup that features Jose Ramirez and slugger Kyle Manzardo would do a lot to help out a starving Cleveland offense.

The Guardians have been known as a pitching powerhouse for well over a decade now. The Cardinals could ask for MLB-ready prospects should they strike a deal with the Guardians. Rob Cerfolio, the current Director of Pitching for St. Louis, is more than familiar with Cleveland's farm system, as he was once the farm director for the Guardians before coming to St. Louis.

The Guardians and Cardinals seem like a perfect pairing for a Brendan Donovan trade. The Guardians need help offensively at the positions that Brendan Donovan thrives in, and the Cardinals could use prospect pitchers, something Cleveland has produced in spades for several years now.

Kansas City Royals

Even after trading for infielder Jonathan India last year, the Kansas City Royals are still looking for upgrades at key positions on their team. The Royals' greatest Achilles Heel has been production from the corner outfield spots. Lucky for the Royals, Brendan Donovan can handily play those positions as well as second base. His versatility would help a lineup that includes perennial MVP-candidate Bobby Witt Jr.

In 2025, Kansas City ranked dead last in both left and right field production according to bWAR. Clearly, there's a need for help in the corners for the Royals. Their production from the keystone position in 2025 was only marginally better, as the Royals' second basemen finished 23rd in MLB in bWAR.

Defensively, Donovan has been a neutral defender according to Defensive Runs Saved in left field and a plus defender according to DRS in right field. Outs Above Average isn't as kind to Donnie defensively, but UZR/150 loves him in the corners. No matter the metric you use, Brendan Donovan is more than serviceable in the corners.

The Royals have ample pitching they could trade from to entice the Cardinals. It would take more than Brendan Donovan to bring back rookie starter Noah Cameron, but a package including prospects could do the trick. I'm skeptical Cameron is a name the Royals would even whisper in trade deals, though. Kris Bubic, who is a free agent after 2026, would be an interesting trade candidate. Ryan Bergert could also be a player to keep an eye on if Donovan is traded to the Royals.

St. Louis could target one of Kansas City's pitching prospects like Drew Beam (7-10 with a 3.83 ERA and 110 strikeouts at High-A) or Kendry Chourio (2-3, 3.51 ERA and 63 strikeouts across three levels last year). Most of Kansas City's high-end prospects are still in the low levels of the minors, so trading with the Royals would definitely be a long-term move by Chaim Bloom.

Trading Brendan Donovan across the state would be a Show-Me deal that would benefit both the Royals and the Cardinals. St. Louis could eye a controllable starting pitcher from the Royals, and Kansas City would get a leadoff hitter to put ahead of Bobby Witt Jr. who can get on base for Witt. It's a win-win deal for both teams.

New York Yankees

The New York Yankees and their fans have been trying to pry Brendan Donovan from the Cardinals for years now. John Mozeliak and the Cardinals have resisted these advances, but with Chaim Bloom at the helm now, perhaps Brian Cashman can finally get his All-Star utility man that he's been eyeing for several years now.

The Yankees have no shortage of offensive production as a team, but the bulk of that offense has been carried by Aaron Judge. Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Ben Rise have made decent contributions to the lineup, but this is an offense that goes when Aaron Judge goes.

New York isn't in desperate need of a left fielder considering Jasson Dominguez, a former top prospect, looks to be their left fielder for now. Right field certainly isn't a need with Aaron Judge out there. Jazz Chisholm Jr. is at second base for at least one more year for the Yankees, too. Ryan McMahon is also at third base, and he's not a free agent until after 2027.

The Yankees aren't as desperate as they once were for Brendan Donovan, but his production would likely be better than what Ryan McMahon provided at the hot corner, and his versatility could play anywhere. The Yankees already lean left-heavy as a lineup, so adding another lefty in Donovan could really clog up some areas. While trading Donovan to the Yankees is a possibility, I would venture to guess that they'll fill holes on the roster in other ways for 2026.

Should a deal be struck between these two historic franchises, look for the Cardinals to once again target controllable starting pitching. The Yankees have a full rotation with Max Fried, Carlos Rodon, Cam Schlittler, and Luis Gil. Could Brendan Donovan be enough to land the Yankees' top pitching prospect in Carlos Lagrange (11-8, 3.53 ERA with 168 strikeouts in 2025)? St. Louis would probably be happy with any one of Lagrange, Elmer Rodriguez, Bryce Cunningham, or Ben Hess in return.

Los Angeles Dodgers

Here we go again!

The Los Angeles Dodgers are eyeing a utility player from the St. Louis Cardinals with two years of team control left, who is recovering from surgery. Does this ring a bell? Are we all getting flashbacks to the 2023-2024 offseason? Yes? Okay, just checking.

According to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the Los Angeles Dodgers have inquired about Brendan Donovan. MLB's super team and the 2025 World Series champions are looking to get better on the margins, and Brendan Donovan would help them do just that.

The Dodgers received less-than-ideal production from Michael Conforto in left field last year, and Donnie seems to be able to slot in nicely there for the 2026 Dodgers. His on-base tendencies would sit well behind the gauntlet that is Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman, Will Smith, and Max Muncy. Donovan would boost the floor of this potent Dodgers lineup dramatically. His defensive versatility will give manager Dave Roberts even more flexibility when filling out a lineup card.

Over the last few years, the Dodgers have leaned heavily on both quantity and quality in their rotation. They've been able to acquire pricey pitchers like Blake Snell, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and Tyler Glasnow while filling out the rest of their rotation with homegrown pitchers such as Emmet Sheehan, Justin Wrobleski, and Gavin Stone. These pitchers all come with injury concerns, but the sheer quantity of reliable starters has boded well for Los Angeles.

I'm skeptical that Brendan Donovan would be enough by himself to acquire Emmet Sheehan. Sheehan is still young, and he was reliable for the Dodgers in the playoffs this year. There's no shortage of high-end Dodgers' prospects for Chaim Bloom to pull from should he strike a deal with the Dodgers.

Seeing Brendan Donovan, a fan favorite, join forces with Tommy Edman and the evil Los Angeles Dodgers would be a tough pill for Cardinals fans to swallow. If that happens, it would be wise of us to all remember that this is a long-term decision to trade Brendan Donovan. Hopefully, the return brings the Cardinals back to perennial contention as quickly as possible.

Arizona Diamondbacks

You might wonder why the Arizona Diamondbacks are on this list. That's a good question! The Diamondbacks have Ketel Marte, a player who finished third in NL MVP voting last year and followed it up with a 2025 season that included him being an All-Star, winning a Silver Slugger, and posting a 4.4-bWAR season. Marte is one of the best second basemen in baseball, so it's reasonable to question Arizona's inclusion on this list.

The Diamondbacks fit because there's an outside chance that Marte is dealt. The Diamondbacks would consider trading Marte to beef up a battered rotation and get some financial relief — Ketel is owed $92 million over the next five years. A player of Marte's caliber could bring back a top-of-the-rotation starting pitcher like Joe Ryan, MacKenzie Gore, or Freddy Peralta.

Arizona would assuredly want to backfill Marte's void, and Brendan Donovan would be a fitting replacement. There's certainly a gap between Ketel Marte and Brendan Donovan, but Donnie is no slouch. He'll bring a low strikeout rate and a penchant for getting on base that made Marte so valuable to the D-Backs.

Third baseman Eugenio Suarez is also a free agent for Arizona after a strong year at the hot corner. Trading for Brendan Donovan would replace Suarez in theory.

The Diamondbacks aren't looking to trade from their rotation given the dearth of options they already have there. Chaim Bloom could dip into Arizona's prospect reserves for a return package, and there isn't a pitcher more fitting for a trade to St. Louis than left-handed pitcher Kohl Drake. Drake finished 2025 with a 4.23 ERA and 106 strikeouts across 89.1 innings. He gave up 10 home runs, but Drake has also shown improvements in stuff over the years. He boasts plus control with a solid fastball-curveball combination.

There would have to be dominoes that fall before Brendan Donovan goes to Arizona, but they're certainly a dark-horse candidate to acquire the Gold Glove utility man.