10 realistic trade options for the Cardinals at the deadline

RHP Zach Eflin

If I had my way, I would make a serious push for Tampa Bay Rays' starter Zach Eflin. Eflin, 30, was signed by the Tampa Bay Rays prior to the 2023 season to the largest contract in franchise history for a free agent. He's been quite reliable for the Rays, especially this year given the fact that most of their projected rotation went down with injuries.

Eflin has a 3.73 ERA over his tenure with the Rays, and while his ERA this year (4.19) is a bit elevated, he's been quite steady after a tough start to the 2024 campaign. What makes Eflin truly dominant is his ability to limit walks. He has a league-best 0.8 BBs per nine innings, and his 2.1% walk rate is enviable. He is only striking out 18.7% of batters he faces, but he's been in the mid-20s in strikeout percentage for his career.

Eflin's 3.77 FIP indicates that he could be a candidate for regression in the second half. He's not your typical dominant starting pitcher in the sense that he doesn't boast a wipeout pitch. His sweeper is his best pitch according to Baseball Savant's run value calculations, and the Cardinals have been seeking pitchers who feature a sweeper all year.

The Rays recently traded starting pitcher Aaron Civale to the Brewers, and they received Milwaukee's #21 prospect in exchange. Civale isn't as good of a pitcher as Eflin is this year, but he's noticeably cheaper than Zach. Eflin's salary increases to $18 million next year while Civale will enter his final year of arbitration. This discrepancy in salary should balance out the cost of the two.