The time is upon us. The trade deadline is just over 10 days away. The Cardinals have put themselves in a good position to be buyers at the deadline with a 6-2 record since the All-Star Break. They sit 2.5 GB of the Cubs in the division and Sit 0.5 GB for the 2nd NL Wild Card spot. But where are the Cardinals biggest needs and who should they target? I’ve got a few ideas.
1. Trevor Bauer – Starting Pitcher
It’s no secret that the Cardinals rotation hasn’t been quite what it was advertised to be. Jack Flaherty and Miles Mikolas have taken a step back from last season and Michael Wacha has pitched himself out of the rotation. The rotation could use a spark and that’s where Bauer comes in.
He currently leads Major League Baseball with 144.2 IP across 22 starts besting the Cardinals leader Mikolas by 30+ innings going into today. Bauer is an interesting name who really broke onto the scene last season going 12-6 with a minuscule 2.21 ERA over 175.1 innings pitched. He also struck out 11.3 batters per 9 innings.
There would be a couple issues with pursuing Bauer. Issue #1 is that his cost would be pretty high, potentially too high for the Cardinals to be interested. Issue #2 is that Cleveland currently holds the first AL Wild Card spot. The Indians are listening, but it might seem unlikely they will be willing to move him without a pretty good haul in return. It has been noted that the Indians would be looking to receive Major League ready talent in exchange for Bauer. So while the Cardinals may not have to part with top prospects, they would still be giving up a lot.
Jon Morosi on Twitter
Source: #Padres emerge as most serious suitor for #Indians starter Trevor Bauer, although no deal is close and Cleveland would need to receive immediate @MLB talent in any Bauer trade. Story: https://t.co/W4kGBoxBwW @MLBNetwork @MLB
2. Whit Merrifield – 2B/OF
The Cardinals offense has been… bad. I mean that in the nicest way possible. But yeah… bad. Paul Goldschmidt and Matt Carpenter have been known to be way better than what they’ve been this season so that hasn’t helped. Marcell Ozuna has been better than his 2018 campaign but he currently sits on the IL unable to help the current offensive struggles.
Merrifield could be a solid upgrade for a struggling offense. He has the ability to play both Second Base and Outfield and has been a solid hitter each of the past three seasons. Merrifield led the Major Leagues with 192 hits a year ago and currently leads the Majors this season with 130. He gets extra base hits and has the ability to steal bases as well.
The Royals are in a position to sell. They sit 24.5 games back in the AL Central. It’s safe to say they aren’t going to win any time soon. The Cardinals would seemingly have to part ways with Kolten Wong in order to get this deal done. I personally don’t think they use Wong in a deal for Merrfield, instead using him towards relief help.
3. Will Smith – Closer/Madison Bumgarner – Starting Pitcher
Speaking of relief help, we have Will Smith of the San Fransisco Giants. The Cardinals need a closer after losing Jordan Hicks to Tommy John Surgery.  They decided to move Carlos Martinez into that role for the time being, but recent struggles might indicate that he’s not the answer.
Now getting on to Smith, he’s been absolutely fantastic this season so far with a 2.61 ERA and 24 saves. He also sports a WHIP of 0.91 and a 13.3 K/9. He would be a solid pickup for the back end of an already solid bullpen.
Moving on to 3b I guess we have Madison Bumgarner  I list both of these players from the Giants, but in reality I could do a top 5 list from just SF. Bumgarner adds value as well being a lefty starter who like Bauer can provide innings. Bumgarner is only 29 and benefits from being in the league for 10 seasons. His numbers may not be what they were a few years ago, but he is still an upgrade to a struggling rotation.
The asking price for both would be high, and a recent winning stretch for SF has given them a chance at a Wild Card spot. Is this recent stretch sustainable? Time will tell, but they have to choose soon on which direction they will go.
4. Marcus Stroman – Starting Pitcher
Stroman brings a bulldog presence similar to Bauer that I think would be an interesting dynamic in the Cardinals clubhouse. Stroman pitches in a tough AL East and is putting up solid numbers.
He currently sports a 3.06 ERA across 117.2 IP. He doesn’t strike a ton of guys out, but he keeps the ball in the yard and the Cardinals would boast a strong defense behind him.
The Cardinals are supposedly interested in him but the Blue Jays will likely want a top prospect in return for Stroman who won’t become a free agent until 2021.
5. Kirby Yates – Closer
If the Cardinals were to pick up a closer, they couldn’t do much better than Yates. He leads the L with 31 saves and has an ERA of 1.07 compared to a 1.20 FIP. He’s been absolutely dominant for SD this season.
The Padres are in an interesting situation currently tied for last in the NL West but they sit just 5.0 games back of a Wild Card Spot. The next couple weeks could be telling for whether they will sell. Yates is set to be a free agent in 2021, so the Padres will obviously want to pull in a rather large package in exchange for Yates.
Wrap Up
The Cardinals need offense, but for them to legitimately succeed they need their guys to perform. Offensive upgrades will be tough to come by at the deadline so the Cardinals will likely look to bolster the pitching staff.
If Goldy can get going and Ozuna can continue what he started when he comes back, the Cards offense will look a lot better. They have won 7 of 10 since the All-Star Break but they’ll need some sort of upgrade in order to make a Postseason run.
Thanks for Reading!
What are your thoughts?
Send me a tweet at @AaronMSTL
Avid follower of the St. Louis Cardinals MLB organization. Love watching my Arkansas Razorbacks play (lose) every week. Fantasy football is about as far into the NFL as I dive.
