5 pitchers that the Cardinals would be making a massive mistake trading for

Cal Quantrill

Last offseason, Cal Quantrill was someone that fans and media speculated could be an addition to the Cardinals' roster. Much like Rogers, Quantrill has been a highly effective starter in the past, but after falling off with the Guardians in 2023, he was non-tendered by the club.

From 2020-2022, Quantrill pitched in 90 games and made 57 starts, posting a 2.08 ERA in the process. But if you look at the underlying numbers for Quantrill, you'll see that most of his success seemed very "Dakota Hudson" like, major walk rate, lack of strikeout stuff, and really relied on groundball luck to find success.

All of that success came crashing down in 2023, leading to a 5.24 ERA in 19 starts, coupled with a 1.47 WHIP and 13% strikeout rate. Even after three highly successful years for the Guardians, the club decided they'd just release him after that poor season, and it shows you just how little confidence they had in him.

To be fair, Quantrill has been better this year with the Rockies, posting a 4.13 ERA in 19 starts thus far. Oddly enough, Quantrill is pitching better at Coors Field this year (4.00 ERA) than he is on the road (4.24 ERA). Even though the results have been better, I just don't see why the Cardinals would value what Quantrill brings over Andre Pallante, Steven Matz, or even some of their Triple-A arms.

Although it seemed like speculation, Jim Bowden has already connected the Cardinals to Quantrill, and if they went down that path, it better be in addition to a better starter than him. I could see bringing in Quantrill as depth in case multiple injuries happen and they just need a guy to make starts, but he does not upgrade the Cardinals in any shape or form from their current group of starters, so he cannot be sold as the answer.