5 blockbuster Winter Meetings trades to make the St. Louis Cardinals true contenders

The St. Louis Cardinals have positioned themselves to strike during this year's Winter Meetings.

It remains to be seen how the Cardinals will attack the trade deadline. It's clear they will be searching for bullpen upgrades during the week and the rest of the offseason, but let's be honest, all eyes are on whether or not they'll swing one more "big move" to get this team back into contention.

There are multiple reasons why it makes a ton of sense for the Cardinals to keep being aggressive this next week.

First, the club has already been aggressive all offseason, so why stop now? After coming in last place in the National League Central and being one of the most disappointing teams in baseball, the Cardinals need a major overhaul. They've done some of that "volume" let work that John Mozeliak preached early this offseason, but now is the opportunity to truly put this roster into a much better position.

Second, which is related to the first, their initial offseason moves have cleared the way for them to make another splash. The signings of Lance Lynn and Kyle Gibson provided needed rotation depth and innings, but only Sonny Gray fits the description of a "top-of-the-rotation" starter. They need another guy, and structuring Gray's contract to make just $10 million in 2024 leaves room for that.

They also have yet to make a trade, something that seems to be on the horizon for St. Louis. They have multiple outfield options they need to consolidate, prospects they can attach to them, and even a few middle infielders who are highly coveted around baseball. The Cardinals have all the pieces to make a splash on the trade market and have stated that the Winter Meetings is when they'd turn their attention to trades.

In this story, I've put together five blockbuster trade packages that the Cardinals could swing to make themselves true contenders in the National League in 2024. If I'm John Mozeliak, I'm looking to pull off one of these trades by the end of the week.