Ranking the Cardinals 8 most valuable trade candidates to jumpstart their rebuild

#7 - Nolan Gorman

It feels like an eternity now since Nolan Gorman's extremely promising sophomore campaign back in 2023, where the left-handed slugger posted a 118 wRC+ with 27 home runs in just 464 plate appearances. Gorman has always boasted game-changing power, but for the last two seasons, the holes in his swing have made him unplayable at times.

While Gorman did rekindle some of his success for stretches this past summer, he ultimately finished the year in almost the exact same spot he was in at the end of 2024, improving his wRC+ by just one point (88) and posting the exact same xwOBA (.305). This time around, Gorman's defense took a big step back after improvement in years prior, as he could not get a handle on third base (-9 OAA) but did play above-average defense at second base.

The Cardinals have been frustrated with Gorman for some time now, and if he didn't possess the one tool (power) that they severely lack in their lineup, I think they'd be very motivated to move on from him. But since Gorman likely lacks any real value on the trade market and is not set to make much money in 2025, they'll likely hold onto him one more year and see how things go.

If the Cardinals do trade Gorman, though, it will be interesting to see if teams think they can channel his power in more of a primary designated hitter role. Gorman was terrible offensively when playing in the field last year (87 wRC+ as a second baseman, 77 wRC+ as a third baseman), but mashed the ball when he was the Cardinals' DH (132 wRC+), albeit in a small sample size (22 games). If you stretch that out to Gorman's career, though, he does have a 120 wRC+ in 62 games at DH, as opposed to a 104 wRC+ as a second baseman and 69 wRC+ when playing third.

If the Cardinals hold onto him, Ivan Herrera's goal of being the Cardinals' primary catcher again in 2026 could help Gorman see more at-bats at DH. With JJ Wetherholt's debut imminent, the infield picture is a bit murky for Gorman right now, but other possible trades could free that up. The Cardinals want to see Gorman's bat perform first and foremost, but it would be nice for him to do that while playing average or better defense at a position in the field. But if they can extract productive offense out of him from the DH spot, that would be a nice revelation.

Ultimately, I wouldn't be shocked if Gorman is moved this offseason, but considering there is other roster movement that seems more likely, I do think he'll end up reporting to camp again with the club. If the Cardinals had more position players aside from Wetherholt who were near a debut, this could be a different conversation. But for now, I think Gorman likely stands put, mostly because I don't think there'll be a worthwhile deal out there.