Predicting which St. Louis Cardinals get traded this offseason

Ivan Herrera: Stay

The Cardinals reportedly expect to have trade interest in Ivan Herrera this offseason, but with Contreras' move to first base, I see zero reason for them to trade their budding young bat.

What was the Cardinals' main issue last year? Offense. Guess who was the club's second-best hitter last year behind Contreras? You guessed it - Herrera. Trading away their young catcher with so much potential when the playing time and opportunity are right there for him to lean into would be a huge mistake.

The Cardinals keep preaching opportunities for young players in 2025. Herrera is a perfect fit for that kind of philosophy in 2025. Yes, he has real issues behind the plate defensively, mostly related to his arm. His number one goal this offseason should be improving his arm strength. But if development is the priority next year, then the Cardinals should be unleashing Herrera at the major league level as often as possible to grow as a catcher and continue to develop his bat as well.

Sure, Pedro Pages will get opportunities because of this catching change, but Herrera should be the primary guy. Like Contreras the last few years, Herrera can slot in as the club's designated hitter when he needs a break from being behind the plate, and Pages can then slot into the lineup and relieve him of such duties.

With both Paul Goldschmidt and likely Arenado gone in 2025, and Contreras needing less DH time due to playing first base, there will be plenty of at-bats to go around there compared to prior years, so there is really no excuse not to have Herrera playing almost every day in 2025.

Erick Fedde: Traded

As I said earlier, there are other pitchers in the Cardinals' rotation who need to be traded more than Mikolas. Erick Fedde and his $7.5 million contract for 2025 make him a super appealing trade candidate this offseason, and the Cardinals must take advantage of that.

You may be asking "Why on earth would they keep Mikolas over Fedde?". Well, it's actually pretty simple to me. In order to move Mikolas in a deal (who is due $17.6 million in 2025), the club will likely need to each about $10 million of that contract, give or take a few million. And then at that point, the club would still be looking at a no-name prospect as the best possible return for Mikolas. When it is all said and done, the Cardinals would save about $7.5 million in salary and get nothing in return for Mikolas while eating $10 million of his deal.

Or, if they traded someone like Fedde, they would have no problem finding a suitor for all of the money he is owed, plus they would be able to get a decent package in return. Nothing flashy here, but a prospect in the middle of their organization's top 10 plus a bit more makes a lot of sense to me. Plus, the club would eat none of the money on Fedde's deal while saving $7.5 million.

See which trade makes more sense for the Cardinals?

If winning is not the main priority in 2025, then move on from Fedde and get value in return. They have young arms or veterans with no value they are already paying who can start next year, so why not get something in return if you can for a starter who won't be with St. Louis beyond next season?