5 ways the Cardinals can acquire a starting pitcher and reliever in the same deal

The St. Louis Cardinals are hoping to bolster their roster in pursuit of a return to the postseason this year as well as make a run once they get there. Their roster needs have been clear for quite some time now, and there is a chance they address two of those in the same trade.

Last year, the Rangers bolstered their rotation and bullpen in one trade with the Cardinals, acquiring both Jordan Montgomery and Chris Stratton. As the trade market continues to take shape, there are multiple teams who present the Cardinals with the same scenario that they gave Texas last deadline. In fact, Katie Woo of The Athletic's bold prediction for the Cardinals at this year's deadline was that they would acquire a starter and reliever in the same move.

With that in mind, I went ahead and cooked up five different trades where I could see the Cardinals addressing their rotation and bullpen in the same deal.

Trade #1 - Texas Rangers

How ironic would it be if the Cardinals and Rangers replicated the trade they made last season? I actually think it makes a lot of sense for both sides.

Nathan Eovaldi would make for a great pairing with Sonny Gray at the top of the Cardinals' rotation. In 17 starts this year, Eovaldi has posted a 3.36 ERA and 1.07 WHIP in 99 innings pitched, striking out 94 hitters in the process. While Eovaldi's strikeout numbers will not wow you, he's among the best in baseball in chase percentage and ground ball percentage, so he knows how to get hitters out effectively.

Not only has he settled in as a consistent regular-season performer over the last several years, but Eovaldi has also proven to be one of the best postseason pitchers in recent memory. In 17 postseason appearances (12 starts), Eovaldi is 9-3 with a 3.05 ERA. In 2018 and 2023 specifically (two of his three postseasons Eovaldi has pitched in), he has dominated and been one of the major reasons his team won the World Series each of those years.

Part of the appeal of Eovaldi for St. Louis is that he has a vesting option for 2025 as long as he is able to hit 300 innings pitched combined between 2023 and 2024. That $20 million option would be a bargain compared to what he could get on the open market, so St. Louis would likely be very interested in snagging him at that price. Eovaldi will need to throw 57 innings down the stretch for St. Louis in order for that option to vest, which is likely, but not guaranteed.

The Cardinals would also be getting an experienced bullpen arm in David Robertson to take some of the pressure off of Ryan Helsley, JoJo Romero, Andrew Kittredge, and Ryan Fernandez. Robertson has mostly been the setup man for the Rangers this year but has done so at an elite level. His 3.16 ERA in 40 appearances will slot in nicely at the back of the Cardinals' bullpen, but he also does something that the Cardinals bullpen as a whole is weak at - strike batters out. Robertson's 37% strikeout percentage is among the best in baseball, and he creates groundballs at an elite level as well.

For the Rangers, they would be able to bolster a farm system that has taken a lot of hits over the last calendar year with the promotions of Evan Carter, Wyatt Langford, and Josh Jung among others as well as trading away assets at this past deadline to acquire Jordan Montgomery, Chris Stratton, Max Scherzer, and Austin Hedges. They already have familiarity with Saggese and Roby and would be getting an MLB-ready arm in Gordon Graceffo as well.

It is a high price to pay for St. Louis, but remember, Montgomery fetched the Cardinals Roby and Saggese along with John King as just a rental, so the potential for Eovaldi to be locked up for 2025 as well should make him a similar if not slightly more attractive asset as Montgomery was.

Trade #2 - Tampa Bay Rays

John Denton of MLB.com reported that a source confirmed to him the Cardinals' interest in Eovadli along with Rays' starting pitcher Zach Eflin. With the Rays interested in both buying and selling at this year's deadline, I think the Cardinals would make a perfect landing spot for Eflin and a reliever like Pete Fairbanks.

Let's start with Eflin. The right-hander is under contract through the 2025 season and has been solid this year coming off what was a career year for Tampa Bay in 2023. Eflin finished sixth in Cy Young voting last season after posting a 3.50 ERA in 177.2 innings pitched but hasn't replicated that success in the same way, posting a 4.14 ERA but does have a 3.64 FIP.

Eflin strikes out even fewer people compared to Eovaldi, but he does have an elite chase rate as well and is one of the best starters in baseball at preventing walks. Eflin has a five-pitch mix that he uses to keep hitters off balance, and while he's probably more of a number three starter, at his best, he can pitch like a number two.

In a vacuum, Eflin should take less to acquire than Eovaldi would, but in order to get a reliever like Fairbanks as well, the Cardinals would have to pay up some compared to that Rangers deal. Fairbanks actually went to the University of Missouri in college, so he has that hometown connection that the Cardinals adore, and he's under contract through 2025 with a $7 million club option for 2026.

Fairbanks has been lethal for the Rays ever since he debuted, boasting a career 3.24 ERA and 32% strikeout percentage to go along with a 2.90 FIP. Fairbanks' fastball sits in the upper 90s and hits 100 MPH when needed as well, and his slider is a swing-and-miss machine as well. Adding that kind of firepower to the back of the Cardinals' bullpen for the next two and a half seasons at that cheap of a contract would be a huge get for St. Louis.

For Tampa Bay, they would be acquiring Saggese and Graceffo like Texas did, two pieces who could contribute to their big league roster in a meaningful way in the near future, but the real centerpiece for them would be catcher Ivan Herrera. Herrera has seemingly lost his role on the club, at least in the immediate future, due to Pedro Pages' emergence and his defensive ability. While Herrera is the better player and asset, the Cardinals may see him more valuable as a trade piece right now, and allow Pages to run with the backup duties.

Herrera's bat has the potential to be really good at the catcher position, and he's been really good at blocking pitches in 2024 as well. His main two issues seem to lie in his below-average framing ability and his terrible arm strength. When Herrera is behind the plate, opposing teams run wild, and he has to fix that in order to be an everyday catcher.

Tampa Bay can work with him this year and during the offseason to improve those weaknesses, and if they can, they'll have a great all-around catcher on their hands. If not, Herrera's bat still plays, they'll just need to find another spot for him.

Trade #3 - Chicago White Sox

This would not be as fun or as flashy of a trade as the first two, but Erick Fedde and John Brebbia would fill the needs that the Cardinals have in their rotation and bullpen, but probably come at a lower cost.

I tend to try and "overpay" compared to what fans may think a package would take, as most often times it does take more than we would imagine, and this seller's market is definitely not going to help keep the price of pitching down. Feede has been great in his return to Major League Baseball this year, posting a 2.98 ERA in 117.2 innings pitched for the White Sox, and will be an arm in high demand.

Fedde uses a four-pitch mix to navigate his starts, with his cutter, sinker, and sweeper yielding the most results. Fedde induces a lot of weak contact and ground balls, so he is not going to wow you with strikeout stuff but he will get outs at a high level. While many fans look at his track record and are immediately out on Fedde, the right-handed made substantial changes to his arsenal and is a completely different pitcher than the one who first debuted in 2017.

Fedde is also under contract for 2025 at just $7.5 million, an absolute bargain for a number three starter type with number two upside. If the Cardinals want to make a rotation upgrade without breaking the bank prospects wise, Fedde may be their best bet.

Brebbia is a familiar face for Cardinals fans and has been oddly effective for Chicago despite what his 5.22 ERA would tell you. On the season, Brebbia has a 3.12 FIP and 29.5% strikeout percentage, and his walk rate is below his career average. An extremely high .352 BABIP seems to be playing into his lack of success, as almost everything in his profile suggests more success.

Grabbing Fedde and Brebbia would be a solid deadline haul for this pitching staff, and shouldn't require more than someone like Saggese to headline the package. Dylan Carlson gets a chance of scenery in this deal as well, something the White Sox can afford to take a flyer on, and Sem Robberse can fill innings for them in the second half as they see if he has a future in their rotation.

I could see the price point here being a bit higher honestly, but I think this is probably the ballpark we are looking at. While I prefer other deals for the Cardinals, I do think this makes them a better team and gives them a quality rotation option for 2025 as well.

Trade #5 - Los Angeles Angels

Let me start by saying, I do not want the Cardinals to trade for Tyler Anderson. I already made that abundantly clear in a story recently, as I just do not think he can keep up his performance this year.

If you want my full thoughts on that, click on the story linked above. In short, Anderson just seems to be destined to regress at some point this year, and the fact that he is under contract next year as well is a con to me, not something that makes me want him even more.

Carlos Estevez, on the other hand, would be a worthy addition to this bullpen mix. The right-hander is a free agent following the season and has been excellent for the Angels this season, posing a 2.45 ERA in his 33 appearances. Estevez has a long track record of pitching in high-leverage situations, whether that is closing games or in a setup role. Estevez is also incentivized to finish the year strong to get paid in free agency, so that's never a bad motivation to have on your team.

One appeal of this combo compared to the ones above is that it would come at a significantly smaller price point. Anderson just does not carry close to the value of these other starters in my opinion, and if it honestly cost anything more than this, I'd be even more out than I already am on Anderson. With Estevez being in a contract year as well and not necessarily having crazy stuff, I doubt he will fetch a super strong package.

The Angels get here two MLB-ready or at least close to being ready arms in Adam Kloffenstein and Michael McGreevy as well as infielder Cesar Prieto, who has raised his stock this year with the offensive numbers he is putting up in Triple-A. The Angels need to keep accumulating talent for the future, and the Cardinals can afford to move on from all of those names if we are being honest.

My thoughts on these deals

If I were to rank the combinations in order of who I would want the Cardinals to acquire based on the talent they are getting in return and the package it would take to get them, I would probably rank them like this

1. Eovaldi/Robertson
2. Eflin/Fairbanks
3. Flaherty/Chafin
4. Fedde/Brebbia
5. Anderson/Estevez

It's not essential by any means that the Cardinals grab both a starter and reliever in the same deal. They can easily target one from one team and one from another. But sometimes it is just easy to try and accomplish multiple things at once, and outside of acquiring Anderson, I give my stamp of approval on the rest of them.