Trading for this star catcher would actually solve the Cardinals' logjam

What if I told you the best way for the St. Louis Cardinals to solve their organizational logjam at catcher, as well as bring clarity to other positional logjams long-term, would be by trading for a star catcher to take over primary catching duties.

No, seriously, the Cardinals should consider adding another catcher to their organization at this year's trade deadline (or more likely, the offseason).

Let me explain.

Until recently, catcher was probably at the very bottom of my list of things the Cardinals should be caring about acquiring in the near future. So why the change? Well, the Cardinals are laying the groundwork for Ivan Herrera to change positions and end his days as a catcher. Many are skeptical of Pedro Pages or Yohel Pozo as the club's answer, and while they do have top prospects who are catchers, should you really bank on them being ready soon? And no, Willson Contreras is not a catcher anymore.

Well, that's because Atlanta Braves' catcher Sean Murphy could cement himself as their long-term option behind the plate, be a major solution to their woes against left-handed pitching offensively, and allow the Cardinals to bring clarity to other position groups at the deadline or during this offseason.

(I promise I actually wrote this piece before he hit two-home runs against the Cardinals last night!)

The Cardinals should explore trading for Sean Murphy to jolt their short-term offense and bring long-term clarity to their roster

Many of you probably remember the Cardinals' infatuation with Murphy back during the 2022-2023 offseason, where the club heavily explored trading for the then-Oakland Athletics' catcher before signing Willson Contreras instead.

No, this is not a "the Cardinals should have traded for Sean Murphy instead of Willson Contreras" article. I still love the Contreras signing and do not think trading for Murphy would have been wise for the Cardinals. Reportedly, the Athletics wanted both Brendan Donovan, Lars Nootbaar, and one of their top pitching prospects in exchange for Murphy - no thank you! That would have been at least 15 years of combined team control that the Cardinals would have given up for Murphy and his three years remaining of club control.

The Braves then swooped in and traded William Contreras to the Brewers in a three-team trade that netted them Murphy, and they promptly signed the catcher to a six-year, $73 million extension.

Murphy would have been a good add for the Cardinals, don't get me wrong! He's one of the better defensive catchers in all of baseball and boasts one of the best bats at the position as well. The asking price was just too rich for the Cardinals that offseason, but I'd argue he's an excellent fit for them now.

First, let's talk about why the Cardinals should be interested in Murphy again, and then I'll dive into why I see the Braves considering this as well.

Ever since Yadier Molina retired following the 2022 season, the Cardinals have been all over the place with their catcher position. Let's take a quick trip down memory lane...

2022-2023 offseason: The asking price for the Cardinals' first choice catcher, Murphy, was far too high, so they pivoted to Contreras in free agency, underplaying how much they would end up caring about his defensive deficiencies.

2023 season: Cardinals removed Willson Contreras from his catching duties in early May, quickly backed off that, and weeks later is back to catching games. Andrew Knizner takes on a more prominent role behind the plate that season, and Ivan Herrera shines offensively in a small sample size.

2023-2024 offseason: Knizner is non-tendered, Cardinals commit to Contreras and Herrera as their catching tandem, and add Pedro Pages to their 40-man roster

2024 season: Contreras misses significant time due to injury, Herrera struggles behind the plate defensively, and Pages emerges as the pitching staff and organization's preferred game caller.

2024-2025 offseason: The Cardinals move Contreras to first base and commit to Herrera/Pages as their new catching tandem.

2025 season: Herrera once again struggles defensively but continues to break out as a premier hitter in baseball, Pages regresses even further offensively but seems to have even more trust as a game caller (with real flaws when it comes to controlling the running game and blocking), and Yohel Pozo comes out of nowhere to hit at a high-level, but like Herrera, struggles defensively.

I think it's fair to say right now that the Cardinals have three catchers on their roster, but zero that they can confidently call their catcher of the future. Yes, there are really intriguing prospects coming, but they are just that. Prospects. We have no idea if Jimmy Crooks, Leonardo Bernal, or Rainiel Rodriguez will be quality big leaguers, let alone primary catchers for a big league club. And even if one of them turns out to be good enough, catchers typically take time to develop, so it may be years before they are truly "the guy".

On top of that, today's game virtually calls for two guys you can rely on behind the plate. Gone are the days of a player catching 150+ games. The most games started by a catcher last season was 125, and only seven catchers started more than 110 games behind the plate, and just 11 catchers started 100 games or more. Most teams, even ones with great catchers, need multiple hands on deck to cover the position.

So, even if the Cardinals could say that Pages will establish himself long-term or one of Crooks, Bernal, or Rodriguez will as well, you still need two, so why not invest in a stable veteran option to ensure that one of those two spots is covered?

In the short term, adding Murphy to this roster would give the Cardinals a right-handed bat they desperately need right now, and he would do so by replacing the worst bat in their lineup, Pages. While adjusting to a new pitching staff midseason is a tall order, they'd have a good defensive catcher in Murphy who can learn the Cardinals' staff as the weeks and months go on.

This season, Murphy has posted a .236/.315/.513 slash line (.828 OPS) with 15 home runs and 35 RBI in just 57 games due to starting the year on the injured list. Murphy's 127 wRC+ this year is much more in line with the hitter we've known him to be, as he had an awful year offensively at the plate in 2024 after tearing his oblique on Opening Day. For his career, Murphy is a 115 wRC+ hitter, but prior to that injury-hampered 2024 season, his career wRC+ was 119.

Another really helpful piece of Murphy's game is just how good he is against left-handed pitching. On the year, Murphy has a 152 wRC+ against southpaws, and for his career, he's at a 119 wRC+.

This year alone, Murphy would rank first on the Cardinals in home runs, second in SLG and wRC+, third in fWAR, and sixth in RBI. Notably, his wRC+ is 60 points higher than Pages', and against left-handed pitching, he'd be first on the team in home runs and second in wRC+ and SLG. He would represent a major upgrade for the Cardinals' greatest weaknesses as an offense - hitting left-handed pitching and general power production.

In the long term, the Cardinals would actually bring a lot of clarity to their roster with a move like this, both in terms of who will be playing where and what players they could move on from. Acquiring Murphy would likely cement Herrera's inevitable destiny as a corner outfielder or DH. He has already begun work as an outfielder, reportedly, which then makes a guy like Lars Nootbaar expendable to turn into pitching or prospects, or possibly even Jordan Walker or Alec Burleson.

The Cardinals can then also capitalize on their organizational catching depth by knowing that one or two of Crooks, Bernal, and Pages could be traded as well. Rather than needing to hold onto all of them because they need to develop two catchers and can't afford to part with any of them until they know who their guys are, the Cardinals can rest easy in knowing that Murphy is one of their options long-term, and they can be aggressive in using that surplus organizatonal value behind the plate to upgrade elsewhere.

Murphy's $15 million annual salary is worth what Murphy provides both at the plate and behind the plate, and as he ages in the coming years, one of the Cardinals' other young catchers can help balance or take on more of the workload when they are ready to, rather than the Cardinals having to rush someone into that spot out of need.

Let's talk about the Braves, because why would they be looking to trade away a stud catcher under team control for at least three more seasons and a club option for a fourth? As things stand today, the Braves are sitting with a record of 40-51, 9.5 games back of the third NL Wild Card in the midst of their version of the 2023 Cardinals season.

The Braves don't need to tear things down, but they should be in a position at this deadline to consider moving on from expiring assets to get value for the future, while also exploring potential deals for players on their roster who could net them significant value in return.

If you haven't noticed, Braves rookie catcher Drake Baldwin is already playing like one of the best in all of baseball, posting a .278/.353/.489 slash line with 11 home runs and 31 RBI in 61 games (42 starts behind the plate). Baldwin is clearly their catcher of the future, and while the Braves have been a team that has prided itself on having two really good catchers split playing time to keep them both fresh throughout the season, I don't think this is crazy talk to believe they may move Murphy in a deal.

As you may recall, the Braves have shrewdly signed most of their young core to long-term deals over the past few years. Six different players are signed to extensions through 2028, and ten have contracts that go through 2027. That does not include arbitration raises in the near future or potential extensions for players like Baldwin, AJ Smith-Shawver, or Spencer Schwellenbach. While the Braves do have money coming off the books with Marcell Ozuna, Raisel Iglesias, and Rafael Montero this offseason, they'll have to find a way to replace each of them while also shoring up their weaknesses that led to their demise this year.

Moving Murphy and the $15 million he is owed annually would accomplish two things - freeing up cash for them to spend as well as bringing back assets to help them retool on the fly.

I'm not going to try and come up with some hypothetical trade packages for you, as I'd just be purely guessing and speculating on something that we just won't know. I'd imagine it wouldn't be cheap to acquire Murphy, but with him coming up on his 31st birthday and one of the highest-paid catchers in the game, I don't think it would take an arm and a leg to get this done either, especially after two straight years of suffering substantial injuries as well.

Murphy's ability to help the Cardinals in the short term, should they want to remain in this playoff race, while also being a long-term solution for the club behind the plate, is what makes this so intriguing to me. Even just 3-4 years of stability behind the plate from Murphy could buy the Cardinals enough time to figure out which of their young catchers they are keeping around long-term, develop them at the Major League level in that tandem, and know that guy will be set up for success when Murphy's contract is up in three years (or four if they pick up the club option).

Will the Cardinals do this? Probably not. But I see a lot of value in exploring a trade for Sean Murphy once again, and the potential short-term and long-term benefits could be monumental.