Could the Cardinals put players on waivers before August 31?

After Mother's Day, it looked as though the Cardinals had overcome their struggles and would be a playoff-contending team. While they're still in the race, they've begun to slide a bit, and are now below .500 after being swept by the Cincinnati Reds.

As you all know, I went back and forth on buying and selling at the trade deadline. Looking back, it's clear that selling would have been the better choice.

But recently, Ken Rosenthal did a piece in The Athletic about the Rangers potentially putting some players on waivers now that they're out of postseason contention, and it got me thinking about the Cardinals and their current situation. Might we see them use the waiver wire before the August 31 deadline?

Could the Cardinals use the waiver wire?

The waiver wire is pretty self-explanatory. Teams find players that have been placed on waivers and have to claim them before a certain time on August 31.

Think of it similarly to the trade deadline but on a reduced scale. Teams used to be able to still make trades in August, but that changed in 2019. Still. there is a deadline, and for players to be eligible for the postseason, they must be claimed by August 31.

However, because there is no trading after the trade deadline, teams don't have to give up anything to acquire the players on waivers, but there's a twist. Several teams can place claims, but the team with the worst record of those who place claims receives the player.

The Cardinals are obviously still in the mix for a playoff spot and far from out of it mathematically. But based on the recent trend, I think it's a safe bet that they'll miss the playoffs and maybe even finish under .500 again.

So, with this recent trend, we might see the Cardinals place some guys on waivers, and given the trajectory of the season, it's not a bad idea. There are some players that are essentially deadweight on the roster and blocking other guys. Players like Paul Goldschmidt, Miles Mikolas, and Steven Matz come to mind.

The Cardinals could also look at other players who like Goldschmidt, are on expiring contracts. Think Andrew Kittredge, Kyle Gibson, and Lance Lynn.

Of course, this is not something the Cardinals are going to want to do, because they're not a team that likes to retool frequently. But after tonight, they've got one of the toughest schedules in all of baseball. This is the stretch that will make or break the season, most likely break given the current trajectory.

It's obvious by now that this is not a good team. Sure, it's better than last year, but the Cardinals proved in this series with the Reds that they're pretenders rather than contenders. It would make sense to try and dump some salary and free up a little space for 2025 and beyond.