What’s left for the St. Louis Cardinals?
An uninspiring brand of baseball lately has forced the Cardinals into a soft sell. St. Louis still has plenty of tantalizing trade assets to dangle, but will they?
Here is what Katie Woo of The Athletic had to say about the Cardinals’ remaining deadline approach:
“Phil Maton is expected to be the final trade for the Cardinals. Teams have inquired about Brendan Donovan, Alec Burleson and Lars Nootbaar to varying degrees, but St. Louis has ‘not entertained that up to this point’ according to a team source. President of baseball operations John Mozeliak said twice in July that if the Cardinals sold, it would likely be limited to players on expiring deals — similar to how the organization operated when it last did so in 2023. Ryan Helsley, Steven Matz and Maton are all pending free agents.”
Donovan is under team control through 2027, while Burleson and Nootbaar are through 2028. St. Louis is 55-55 and 10 games back of the Milwaukee Brewers for the National League Central lead, and it could theoretically make a run at the third Wild Card spot.
The Cardinals are 5.5 games back of the current third-place holders San Diego Padres, but even if they could close the gap, their postseason damage odds are slim.
Ryan Helsley is a New York Met, and Maton is seemingly on his way out of St. Louis. A full sale might satisfy some fans who feel this franchise is middling in mediocrity. But, retaining Donovan, Burleson, and Nootbaar gives it a much better shot at a bounce-back 2026 campaign.
Donovan would likely draw a sizable return, with his .285 batting average, .774 OPS, 119 OPS+, 39:58 BB:K ratio, and defensive versatility all appealing to contenders. However, this lineup still has pieces like Willson Contreras, Iván Herrera, and Masyn Winn, and sacrificing a chunk of this core feels un-Cardinal-like.
For now, it seems like St. Louis will let this season unwind in mundane fashion and turn its attention toward next year.