Cardinals' savvy deadline trade recoups value from John Mozeliak's free-agent whiff

The St. Louis Cardinals have knocked down another domino from their trade assets!

Katie Woo of The Athletic is reporting that left-handed swingman Steven Matz has been traded to the Boston Red Sox, incoming president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom's most recent team. This move solidifies innings for either back-end bullpen support or postseason starts to help carry the fatigued rotation deeper into games.

In return for Matz, the Cardinals acquired 1B/3B Blaze Jordan, who the Cardinals were reportedly high on back in the 2020 MLB Draft and Bloom snagged in the third round that year. Jordan is the Red Sox's 17th-ranked prospect according to MLB Pipeline.

The Cardinals have traded Steven Matz to the Boston Red Sox to recoup value on John Mozeliak's failed free-agent signing

After entering Tuesday night's game against the Miami Marlins in the sixth inning, Matz was nowhere to be seen when the seventh inning began, and the entire Cardinals dugout appeared to be confused as to what was happening as Matt Svanson was summoned to take the mound. At that moment, many people thought a deal had gone down, but Oliver Marmol confirmed after the game that it was just a miscommunication between the dugout and bullpen, and Matz was only slated to throw one inning.

Matz, who is in his last year of a four-year, $44 million contract, did not live up to the overall expectations of the contract. He was targeted as a reliable middle of the rotation arm after a dominant 2021 season with the Toronto Blue Jays. With the Blue Jays, Matz posted a 14-7 record, 3.82 ERA, 3.79 FIP, 1.334 WHIP, and 8.6 SO/9 across 150.2 IP. This rebound season after being injury-riddled in New York was enough convincing for John Mozeliak to offer Matz a four-year contract in free agency. Since his signing, Matz has only cracked 100 IP once in 2022 and has spent the majority of his contract coming out of the bullpen. He has maintained mostly career normal numbers in St. Louis, but this has been at reduced innings, given his very poor production as a starter in his time there. Only 36 games out of his 84 were starts compared to his 107 out of 112 in New York and all 29 games for Toronto.

The Cardinals have several more moves to make before Thursday's trade deadline, but Matz is a significant one to make. He has looked reliable in 2025, and being in a rental situation, the front office had to get a return out of him to gain trust back from the fans. This should have been the first prioritized move, and fortunately, it took place early on.

Now we wait and see what the team will potentially get for another rental deal for Phil Maton. But until then, so long, Steven Matz, and best of luck in your future.