The Cardinals have had many ebbs and flows to start off the 2017 campaign. Beginning their season off to an hideous record and finding themselves in the unfamiliar spot in the cellar of the NL Central, the Cardinals have been able to right the ship, and are now only a single game back of the first place Chicago Cubs. The Cubs have had a surprisingly mediocre start to their season, contrasted to last season when the North Siders already had a whopping six game lead over the Redbirds. The first month of the season has been a struggle for the Cardinals bullpen. The pen has posted an abysmal 5.55 ERA to start the season, which is fifth worse in all of baseball! Many fans and baseball minds will say that it is way too premature to start looking at possible trades, but when you are in a division with a powerhouse such as the Cubs, it is never too soon to attempt to plug the team’s biggest hole, which is why I am suggesting the Cardinals should explore a trade for an impact relief arm immediately.
The old baseball adage is that you can’t win a pennant in April, but you sure can lose one in April. This adage could not be more accurate for a team such as the Kansas City Royals, who are the owners of the worst record in baseball up to this point in the young season. The Royals may soon be waving the white flag on their 2017 campaign, and looking to gain assets for their extremely uncertain future. With many of their core players set to become unrestricted free agents, a substantial rebuild is imminent for the Royals. Since the Royals will more than likely be in rebuild mode, an elite reliever such as Kelvin Herrera will be a waste of valuable resources for a club not in contention. This is why I believe that the Cardinals should explore a trade to acquire Kelvin Herrera as soon as possible.
Kelvin Herrera has been dominant this season so far, owning an outstanding 3.00 ERA. Herrera has been dominant over his seven seasons in the majors, owning a career ERA of 2.64. Herrera is a free agent after this season, only adding to the Royals motivation to trade him. The Royals made a similar trade this off season, when they traded Wade Davis to the Cubs for Cuban slugger Jorge Soler, so Mo would have a similar trade to base his offer on if the Cardinals do indeed decide to pursue Herrera. Soler has a medioric start to his career, owning a 258 career average along with average power, with twelve being the most home runs he’s hit in a season. The Cardinals would more than likely not have to part ways with one of their top prospects such as Sierra or Perez, instead possibly a prospect of Harrison Bader’s stature would be enough to pry away Herrera from Kansas City.
The Cardinals do not appear that the organization will have an open spot in the outfield anytime soon, with the signing of Dexter Fowler, the contract extension for Stephen Piscotty, and the club’s apparent infatuation with the “potential” of Randal Grichuk. Combine that with top prospect, Magnerius Sierra waiting in the wings, a spot on the team for Harrison Bader is seeming to become more and more unlikely. According to MLB Pipeline, Bader is ranked as the fifth best prospect in the Cardinals farm system, which would make him attractive for a rebuilding team such as the Royals. Another factor that is in play is the fact that the Royals’ center fielder, Lorenzo Cain is a free a agent after this season. So a young and talented prospect such as Bader would more than likely be attractive to the Royals.
I believe that if the Cardinals have any aspirations of contending this season, they must address their bullpen sooner rather than later, and Kansas City appears to be a perfect trade partner that will produce a trade to benefit both organizations.
