MLB insider inexplicably teases Cardinals trade deadline sale during hot streak

The St. Louis Cardinals have brought the energy back to Busch Stadium, thanks to a rowdy group of shirtless baseball players, and it could not have come at a better time. After a long 16-game stretch along the west coast, the Cardinals finally came back to St. Louis and kicked off Rivalry Weekend with a series against the Royals that changed the tune in The Lou. Now seeing themselves firmly in contender conversations thanks to an unexpected start, questions remain about which way Chaim Bloom will go at the trade deadline. While the plan has always been future-first, Bloom has said the team would get "creative" if they need to plug some roster holes, but the overall idea is to think about a couple years down the road. Even with the sights set on 2027 and beyond, MLB insider Bob Nightengale thinks the plan could shift from sellers to, at minimum, holders later this summer.

As the Cardinals get ready to kick off an 18-game stretch that involves all but one series against NL Central opponents, we will get a chance to see if this team has what it takes to make a run at October. They have already had a couple of tough matchups, with the aforementioned west coast swing as well as half of their games being against teams with winning records. By all accounts, the 2026 Cardinals team has passed every test with flying colors, doing so with standout individual performances by Jordan Walker, rookie JJ Wetherholt, and others being the hero of the day multiple times. In the rotation, the ragtag group has moved past an early-season lull, becoming a consistent factor for the roster and giving the bullpen some needed time off.

The Cardinals buying at the deadline would be against everything Chaim Bloom has built so far

The entire point of the 2026 season was supposed to be to get answers on a club that had been stuck in neutral for the past few years. With a young crop of talent, the Cardinals needed to see what type of players Jordan Walker, Masyn Winn, Nolan Gorman, Victor Scott II, and really anyone on their MLB roster was going to be. So far, Jordan Walker is playing like an MVP candidate and should be here for the long term. JJ Wetherholt has performed beyond his rookie status, and others on the roster are figuring out what their role is. This group has come together with the goal of proving the experts wrong and has done so thus far. This early success, though, has spurred conversations among Cardinal Nation and the national media wondering if Bloom's plan of attack has now changed. In Nightengale's article, these talks were included in the footnotes but again show that sometimes, national insiders are disconnected from the local flavor.

"While the St. Louis Cardinals’ surprising success may thwart plans for selling at the trade deadline, teams still are keeping a close eye on closer Riley O’Brien and pitchers JoJo Romero and Dustin May."

Bob Nightengale

His quote does not necessarily say that the Cardinals will be going for it now in 2026, but it does point to the thought that Bloom could sidestep his plan to make a postseason run years earlier than expected. I would be surprised if we saw a total change in path and do not see some expiring contracts, like JoJo Romero and Dustin May, dealt. I recently brought up how May can and should be an extension target, but that assumes that the minor leaguers may not be ready to make the jump and the price has to be right to keep him around. If he can continue performing like a mid-rotation arm, he could net an intriguing return that could help for this year and beyond, similar to how the Cardinals acquired Hunter Dobbins and Richard Fitts among a handful of other prospects in offseason trades.

The bullpen makes the most sense to deal from, although it would cause a painful situation in the relief corps that already has plenty of questions. Subtracting Romero, top closer Riley O'Brien, and offseason addition Ryne Stanek would wipe out the quality options for Oliver Marmol, basically leaving him with Matt Svanson, George Soriano, Gordon Graceffo, and Justin Bruihl as go-to guys to preserve some wins. In a deal involving the free agents to be, there may be some potential to add relievers back, but the bullpen is such a question mark that giving up assets for short-term fixes would be outside of Bloom's MO thus far.

I personally think we will see the pitching staff altered in the coming months, but the position player group may go untouched throughout the season. Unless there is an injury or performances that warrant a demotion, the starting nine will be mostly the same, along with the addition of Lars Nootbaar when he returns from injury.

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