The Cardinals need to trade Miles Mikolas this offseason regardless of the cost

Route #2: Swap one expensive player for another

This is actually something that happens fairly often in baseball, and it's probably my preferred route. The then Cleveland Indians and Atlanta Braves swapped two pricey players in Eddie Rosario and Pablo Sandoval to fill needs for the opposing team in 2021. The Toronto Blue Jays sent Vernon Wells to the Los Angeles Angels in 2011 for Mike Napoli and Juan Rivera in a similar deal.

These trades are most often to fill holes on another team while hoping a change of scenery can be beneficial for a veteran player who is struggling. One team with an expensive player could be looking to offload him to make space for cheaper, younger players. Another could be looking to do the same but at a different position on the field.

The issue is finding a team that wants your expensive player that also has an expensive player they are willing to give up who could be beneficial to you. That limits the options dramatically. The Cardinals will have to identify a team with a hefty payroll that needs a starting pitcher in 2025. There's a short list there.

The San Francisco Giants come to mind first. Their rotation this year has been in shambles. Blake Snell started the year hurt, and his return was unceremonious. He's been dominant recently, though. Logan Webb has been as reliable as ever. Robbie Ray and Kyle Harrison have been hurt as well, and Jordan Hicks started off hot but has faded recently.

It's assumed the Giants will be big players in the free agent market this offseason, but if they fall short of their goals, they could trade for Mikolas to round out the staff. The Cardinals could pick up Robbie Ray in return, but he's been very bad for years now, and he is owed $25 million next year. The Giants would have to send money back in that deal. Perhaps catcher Mike Yastrzemski could be had, as he will be entering his final year of arbitration, and he could cost as much as $11 million. The Cardinals would need to send money to at least balance the contracts in this scenario.

The Toronto Blue Jays could be looking to do a similar thing, but their expensive players are their starting pitchers. Trading one old, struggling, and expensive pitcher strictly for a change of scenery and not necessarily to fill a void gets tricky.

This route is probably the toughest to maneuver due to a lack of options, but it's my preferred choice. St. Louis could possibly use a first baseman with one year left on his deal depending on whether or not the team moves Alec Burleson to first. Anthony Rizzo, Ty France, and Max Muncy would be interesting candidates to be swapped with Mikolas.