MLB Insider lists the Cardinals as a potential trade fit for two starting pitchers

Two names that keep coming up in the St. Louis Cardinals' pursuit of starting pitching this offseason are Tampa Bay Rays' Tyler Glasnow and Toronto Blue Jays' Alek Manoah.

FanSided's MLB Insider, Robert Murray, wrote about three players to watch on the trade market this offseason and listed the Cardinals as the potential fit for Manoah and both the Braves and Cardinals as fits for Glasnow.

While Murray is not officially reporting that either of these moves will be happening, there have been reports recently have indicated the Cardinals are exploring a trade for Glasnow, and other reports linking St. Louis and Toronto for a Manoah trade.

On the Glasnow front, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch has reported the Cardinals' interest in Glasnow since early October (subscription required), going as far as to say the Cardinals "will call. Or email. Or text. Or all three. Whatever works." in regards to checking in on Rays' right-hander. Not only are the Cardinals interested in Glasnow, but it's being widely reported that the expectation around the league is that Glasnow will be moved this offseason.

As a potential deal for Glasnow has garnered attention over the past several weeks, I put together three different trade packages that the Cardinals could offer to the Rays to acquire Glasnow's services. Since Glasnow is making $25 million in the final year of his contract for 2024 and has a lengthy injury history, his trade value is substantially lower than what his talent would suggest.

Similarly, Alec Manoah has gone from one of the most prized assets in baseball to one of its biggest question marks after an awful 2023 season. At one point, Manoah was sent all the way down to the Blue Jays' instructional league to try and figure out what was going on with his steep decline in performance. Goold also linked the Cardinals to a deal with the Blue Jays for Alek Manoah recently (subscription required), citing Ben Nicholson-Smith, a writer for Sportsnet, and his speculation that the Blue Jays could swap Manoah for Dylan Carlson. Murray picked up on this idea earlier this week and mentioned Manoah as a name to watch for St. Louis.

As conversations begin to swirl about the price of starting pitching on the free agent market, it feels more and more likely that the Cardinals will add at least one arm through the trade market this winter. Something that is playing to the Cardinals' advantage is the weak position player free agent class, causing many teams to look toward trades to improve their lineups. This puts a premium both on their best young bats (like Nolan Gorman, Brendan Donovan, and Tommy Edman) as well as some of their depth pieces (like Alec Burleson, Dylan Carlson, and Tyler O'Neill).

We'll continue to keep you up to date on the latest news and rumors as the Cardinals' offseason unfolds over here at Redbird Rants.