A Cardinals-Tigers mega deal to solve all of the Cardinals' problems

The needs of the St. Louis Cardinals this trade deadline are quite apparent. They need a starting pitcher, a left-handed reliever who can pitch in high-leverage situations, and a right-handed-hitting outfielder.

John Mozeliak could shop at two or three different places to fill these needs, or he can be a value shopper at the deadline. Plenty of teams have a starter AND a reliever to help the Cardinals, but only one team truly has all three needs at once: the Detroit Tigers.

The Tigers will be sellers this year; that much is certain. What is unclear, however, is what they'll ask in exchange for their most likely trade candidates. Outlets across the country have been listing Tigers' players who could be traded at the deadline, but three in particular stand out: Jack Flaherty, Mark Canha, and Andrew Chafin.

The Cardinals could use all three.

This feels like a "throw as much at the Tigers and hope they take it" type of deal. Carlson has been bad recently, like really bad. However, he's still young, controllable, and has ability in his DNA somewhere. Graceffo is a guy who can slot into the rotation by the end of the year and absolutely next year. Roby was once a top-100 prospect who has struggled this year. Crooks is a catcher who needs some finishing yet, but he's shown great promise this year at Double-A Springfield.

In exchange, the Cardinals receive three guys who fill immediate -- and major -- holes on the roster. Jack Flaherty's abilities this year have been well-documented across the Redbird Rants site. Read one particular story here. Chafin has a 3.48 ERA with one save and 44 strikeouts in 33.2 innings; he also boasts seven holds. Canha is roughly 3% better than league average according to wRC+ on the whole, but he has a 150 wRC+ against left-handed pitchers in just under 100 plate appearances.

Flaherty and Canha are true rentals, and Chafin has a club option worth $6.5 million next year. The Cardinals are giving up quite a bit in terms of team control here, but the Tigers would have to be satisfied with the return here. Dylan Carlson's inclusion likely lowers the value of a guy like Cooper Hjerpe, but you never know what Detroit may think of him.