6 keys to the St. Louis Cardinals pulling off a dream trade deadline

With less than a week to go until the MLB trade deadline, the St. Louis Cardinals have plenty of moves they can make to improve their club for 2026 and beyond. How the Cardinals handle their assets could have major implications for a number of years.

While there is a ton of buzz around whom they could sell and even assets that they could repurpose to better fit Chaim Bloom's vision for the club moving forward, to me, the most interesting thing to think about is how a collection of decisions could come together to make for an excellent trade deadline.

With how the Cardinals are positioned right now, each move they make can have ripple effects and impact other decisions they make at the deadline. If the Cardinals are going to walk away from this trade deadline with high praise from the fanbase and industry, it will require a series of moves that are carefully plotted together rather than just accomplishing the low-hanging fruit moves.

Here are 6 keys to the Cardinals pulling off a dream trade deadline

1. Cash in on Ryan Helsley to the highest bidder

Even Ryan Helsley believes he is going to be traded, stating there's a "90% chance" in his mind that he's moved between now and the trade deadline. And that would be the right thing for the St. Louis Cardinals to do.

Helsley, an impending free agent, is the kind of player that many teams are going to want at this year's trade deadline, and with the Cardinals not being legit contenders this year, the value that Helsley can bring them in a trade should outweigh the potential of him helping them in August and September.

I know the Cardinals have weighed the idea of Helsley being a qualifying offer candidate, but at this rate, I don't see why they would offer him that. I don't think a team is going to want to sign him this offseason if he has a qualifying offer attached to him, so my guess is he'd accept that if offered to him, and the Cardinals should not be looking to pay Helsley $20 million next year.

Between now and July 31st, my guess is that multiple contenders will make strong pushes to acquire Helsley, and as sad as it will be to see one of the best closers the Cardinals have had in their franchise go, Helsley holds more value to them as a trade chip than closing down games for them.

Now, Helsley has repeatedly said that he would love to remain in St. Louis, and if he truly feels that way, and the club wants a reunion, they can do that in the offseason (much like Aroldis Chapman returned to the Yankees the offseason after being dealt to the Cubs at the 2016 trade deadline).