The Cardinals are running out of clock and, so far, still haven’t made their move.
With the deadline only hours away, St. Louis has yet to complete a trade, and the list of names circulating around the roster keeps getting more interesting.
Dustin May, JoJo Romero and Ryne Stanek are the obvious pieces, but Jon Morosi of MLB Network says the club is open to more than just the expected veterans. The Cardinals are listening on anybody not named Jordan Walker or JJ Wetherholt.
That’s where Alec Burleson enters the picture as a potential wild card.
Morosi reported: "Heard this today: Cardinals 1B/OF Alec Burleson is one of the most popular controllable bats on the trade market. @MLBNetwork"
Burleson has been viewed as part of the Cardinals’ future, and he’s also a popular presence in the clubhouse. But the reality of the moment is hard to ignore.
St. Louis isn’t contending this year, and with little traction building around May, Stanek or Romero, the front office may have to get creative if it wants to maximize its deadline return.
Burleson also fits a profile that could draw real interest. The Cardinals have a number of left-handed bats in the organization, and if the right offer shows up, moving him would not be out of bounds. He is one of the more valuable controllable bats available, and that kind of player can bring back a significant package.
The kind of return St. Louis could chase would likely include major league-ready pitching prospects, which would line up with a longer-term reset.
Burleson has only a few years left before free agency, and the Cardinals are still a few years away from their next real contention window. That makes him the sort of player they at least have to think about if the price is strong enough.
For now, the question is what Chaim Bloom decides as the deadline approaches. The Cardinals have several layers to sort through, and the next few hours will tell a lot about how aggressively they plan to shape this new era.
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Cardinals May Have Found The Deadline Partner Fans Were Waiting On
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Holliday stands out as the sort of young talent that can reshape a roster timeline, while Kirby would almost certainly come with a steep acquisition cost if the Cardinals tried to make a serious run at him. Mayer and Detmers give the group more variety, and that is part of what makes this kind of deadline chatter so easy to follow and so hard to read. The Cardinals can dream on the upside, but as always with this time of year, getting from interest to actual movement is where the real uncertainty begins. [Read more 🡒]
Cardinals Just Made A Tough Call On A Fan Favorite Outfielder
The Cardinals spent the day reshaping their outfield picture with a move that signals both urgency and patience. Lars Nootbaar, long one of the more recognizable faces in the lineup, is on his way out after the club weighed his health concerns against the rise of younger outfield prospects in the organization.
In return, St. Louis added pitching depth, getting right-hander Daniel Eagen and left-handed reliever Sando Santana as part of a package that also includes a third player not yet reported. It is the kind of deal that can look sensible on paper for a team trying to balance present needs with future value, but the final shape of the return still has one more piece to come into focus. [Read more 🡒]