Cardinals Rumors: Surprise blockbuster trade brewing on deadline day

Buckle your seatbelts, St. Louis Cardinals fans! Today is the MLB trade deadline, and if you thought the Cardinals' biggest moves were behind them, you may be in for a major surprise on deadline day.

The Cardinals moved star closer Ryan Helsley to the New York Mets and swingman Steven Matz to the Boston Red Sox last night, and as interest in relievers Phil Maton and JoJo Romero remains high, new reports this morning indicate that contenders would like to pull off a massive deal with the Cardinals on deadline day.

Trade interest for Brendan Donovan, Lars Nootbaar, and Alec Burleson heating up as the Cardinals navigate the deadline

Bob Nightengale of USA Today is reporting this morning that the Cardinals are wide open for business, and that several teams, including the Philadelphia Phillies and Houston Astros, are interested in acquiring young bats like Brendan Donovan, Lars Nootbaar, and Alec Burleson.

Jeff Jones, who covers the Cardinals for the Belleville News-Democrat, added to this report by noting that the Phillies and Cardinals know each other's systems very well, as they've chatted about players like Jordan Montgomery, Ryan Helsley, and Nolan Arenado before, and the Phillies need for a corner outfielder could lead Dave Dombrowski to make a shocking blockbuster move with the Cardinals today.

While I do think we should still be shocked if the Cardinals actually trade one of those three young bats today, I am not at all surprised that they are listening, and even less surprised that contenders may push them hard today with the lack of bats available in this trade market. Eugenio Suarez was just moved to the Seattle Mariners last night, and there really isn't any other major bats on the market right now.

Trade interest in these young players has been reported in recent days as well, as the Astros, Los Angeles Dodgers, and New York Yankees were named as teams sniffing around on Brendan Donovan, and reports around the league have indicated that the Cardinals are listening to offers on all young players.

The Cardinals seem to be preparing for a multi-year rebuild under Chaim Bloom and may want to extract as much value out of players as they can right now. Donovan was an All-Star this year, slashing .285/.358/.416, which is good for 20% above league average offensive production and worth 2.5 fWAR on the year. Alec Burleson is having a career year, slashing .287/.341/.469 with 14 home runs, batting 27% above league average, and improving his corner outfield defense quite a bit this year.

Lars Nootbaar is having a down year for St. Louis, and while he is on the injured list right now, he is expected to return to the lineup later this week. For his career, Nootbaar is 14% above league average at the plate and plays above-average corner outfield defense, and teams around baseball think highly of his upside and see untapped offensive potential in his profile due to his incredible feel for the strike zone and ability to hit the ball hard consistently.

The Cardinals will have to be blown away with an offer to move one of these three, or even other young bats like Ivan Herrera, Nolan Gorman, or Jordan Walker, today. All of these players have at least two years of club control remaining, so the Cardinals are in no rush to make a move here. But as contending clubs look to put the final pieces of their push for a World Series together today, one of these young bats could be viewed as their missing piece.

Keep an eye on the rumor mill and news feed as the day progresses. The trade deadline is at 5 pm CT, and it sounds like the Cardinals may have a blockbuster on their hands, along with potential trades regarding Phil Maton and JoJo Romero.