4 players the Cardinals should have cut bait with before their trade value dipped

What do you do when you have a player who has seemed to hit their peak? Do you run with it and see if their success can be sustained? Or do you look to sell high on them and try to use their recent success to improve in a position that's in need of improvement?

We saw the Cardinals sell high on Richie Palacios in this past offseason, an outfielder who had a solid stretch at the end of the 2023 season. But it was a small sample size, and the Cardinals have a plethora of outfielders, giving him consistent playing time would've been difficult, so they sold high on him and were able to acquire Andrew Kittredge, who has become a reliable late-inning reliever for the Cards this year.

There is some players on the Cardinals who could've been sold high on as well, but unfortunately, that ship has sailed. Some down seasons in 2024, and an overall degression in their stats have prevented the Cardinals from potentially trading these players for any high-quality value in return.

If you ask me there is four players that come to mind where their value have dropped over the years, and the team's time to sell high on them has run out. The first one is a former top prospect.

Outfielder Dylan Carlson

The downfall of Dylan Carlson has been sad to witness. He was very impressive in his rookie season in 2021, but he has not been able to repeat that success. Remember back in 2022 when there were rumblings about the Cardinals trading for Juan Soto? Let's just say a package centered around Carlson would not get you Soto today.

Injuries have played a factor in Carlson's decline and it started right away this season in Spring Training. A collision in the outfield with Jordan Walker landed him on the injured list before the season started, and since he has come back he has not been able to contribute. Carlson is hitting .211 without a home run and 11 RBI in 54 games so far in 2024, and he is losing playing time due to the surprise success of Michael Siani. It feels like Carlson needs a change of scenery, but the return for him will be nowhere near what it could've been 2 seasons ago.