4 trade heists by the Cardinals in the last 10 years

2. St. Louis Cardinals acquire RHP Giovanny Gallegos and RHP Chasen Shreve for 1B Luke Voit.

On July 29th, 2018, John Mozeliak worked a trade that sent first baseman Luke Voit to the New York Yankees for relievers Giovanny Gallegos and Chasen Shreve. Luke Voit was expendable due to Paul Goldschmidt's inclusion on the team, and the roster needed some pitching depth.

Gallegos was sent to AAA Memphis immediately after the trade, and he made his first appearances for the Cardinals later that year. Since the trade, Gallegos has accumulated 6.2 fWAR in 5 seasons. He has 44 saves during his time in St. Louis, and his consistency at the back end of the bullpen has been a stabilizing feature for the right-handed reliever.

Conversely, Luke Voit has accumulated 4.1 fWAR since his departure from St. Louis. Voit had a decent showing in his first few years in the Bronx, but he struggled in 2021, 2022, and 2023 while playing for a variety of teams.

Though Gallegos's 2023 performance left plenty to be desired, he was still a top-7 reliever in all of baseball according to a variety of metrics between 2019 and 2022. In that span, he threw 228.1 innings with a 2.84 ERA, 2.83 FIP, 0.893 WHIP, and an ERA+ of 142. He placed 15th among relievers in ERA, 8th in FIP, and 6th in total fWAR in his first 4 years in St. Louis.

While Gallegos has been durable, reliable, and consistent for the Cardinals, Luke Voit has struggled to maintain his performance from earlier in the trade. What was once a lopsided deal in favor of the Yankees has since become a victory for the Cardinals.

Gallegos is entering the last year of his contract with St. Louis, so he can become a free agent at the end of the year. If he can perform as well as he did early in his career with the Redbirds, an extension is possible. Giovanny Gallegos, for as forgotten as he is on the national stage, has been a consistent reliever who has provided wonderful innings in relief since the Cardinals acquired him in 2018.

3. The St. Louis Cardinals swap OF Jon Jay for INF Jedd Gyorko.

Early in the winter of 2015, the St. Louis Cardinals traded outfielder Jon Jay to the San Diego Padres for 2B/3B Jedd Gyorko. This was a swap of two major league players hoping to fill a hole for the other team. Some additional cash was also sent to the Cardinals to help cover Gyorko's contract. In theory, both the Cardinals and Padres would benefit from this trade.

Jay struggled in 2015 in only 79 games for the Cardinals. He slashed .210/.306/.257 that year with good defense in center field. Players such as Peter Bourjos, Randal Grichuk, and Harrison Bader could cover well enough in center, so Jay's role was ever-decreasing.

While Kolten Wong was handling second base more than capably, the Cardinals had quite the hole at third base. Matt Carpenter was getting most of the looks at the hot corner from 2014-2015, but his defense left much to be desired. Gyorko would fill the hole at third base for the subsequent 2 years after the trade.

During Gyorko's tenure in St. Louis, he accumulated 7.8 fWAR. Meanwhile, Jon Jay played for 4 different teams in 3 years, and he racked up a meager total of 1.5 fWAR. Injuries and underperformance were the story of Jay's career outside of St. Louis, and he couldn't tap into any power for the Padres, Cubs, Royals, or Diamondbacks from 2016-2018.

It was tough to see such a beloved player leave St. Louis, but Jon Jay needed a change of scenery, and his time in St. Louis was finished. In exchange, the Cardinals filled a hole with a serviceable infielder. Gyorko's career in St. Louis ended on a low note, but he provided great innings at the hot corner in 2016 and 2017.

Gyorko's plus performance outweighed how much more expensive he was than Jon Jay in the end.

4. St. Louis Cardinals get 3B Nolan Arenado and $51 million for LHP Austin Gomber, INF Mateo Gil, INF Elehuris Montero, RHP Tony Lacey, and RHP Jake Sommers

This trade appeared to be a fleecing from the start, and that belief has become fact three years later. The Cardinals got themselves an All-Star third baseman for spare parts, most of whom never saw a major league inning. In addition to getting one of the best players in baseball, John Mozeliak somehow also convinced the Rockies to pay for a sizeable chunk of Nolan Arenado's contract. This may be one of the most lopsided trades in baseball history.

Since coming to the Cardinals in 2021, Nolan Arenado has accumulated 13.8 fWAR. He's been to 3 All-Star games, he placed third in MVP voting in 2022, he's received two Gold Glove Awards, and he won the Silver Slugger Award in 2022. Arenado has been nothing short of spectacular in St. Louis.

Of the players who were sent to Colorado, only Austin Gomber and Elehuris Montero have played in the majors. Montero has been worth -0.7 fWAR in two MLB stints, and Gomber has had more modest success with 3.1 fWAR in three seasons with Colorado. Montero (#5 in 2019), Tony Locey (#19) Mateo Gil (#21 in 2020) were all once top-30 organizational prospects, but not one cracked national prospect lists.

The Cardinals were able to keep prized prospects, get a future Hall of Famer, and get the Rockies to pay for part of Arenado's remaining salary. This trade is severely lopsided for the Cardinals, and John Mozeliak did a great job with this trade.