Aaron Boone’s update on Cody Bellinger changed the picture for the New York Yankees in a hurry, and it may have handed the St. Louis Cardinals a trade opening they can actually use.
Bellinger has a grade-2 hamstring sprain and is expected to miss 4-6 weeks, leaving the Yankees with a real problem in the outfield. Aaron Judge has been sidelined since May 31 with a fractured rib and has no timetable to return, while Giancarlo Stanton is also hurt. With that kind of damage to the lineup, New York’s need for outfield help just got a lot more urgent.
That’s where the Cardinals come in. St.
Louis has stumbled badly since the All-Star break, going 3-7 and slipping to 1.5 games out of the Wild Card race. They’ve also dropped behind the Arizona Diamondbacks, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Washington Nationals in the standings, which has pushed them toward seller territory at this year’s trade deadline.
There are multiple Cardinals who could be moved. Expiring-contract players like Dustin May, Ryne Stanek, and JoJo Romero are obvious candidates, while Riley O’Brien has more team control and could also be dealt. Chaim Bloom could even decide to go bigger and listen on names such as Ivan Herrera, Masyn Winn, or Andre Pallante.
But the most obvious fit with New York is Lars Nootbaar.
Nootbaar would give the Yankees a lot of what they just lost with Bellinger. Both are strong defenders, both can get on base, and both can handle more than one outfield spot. For a Yankees club scrambling to patch together the outfield, that kind of match makes sense.
The return could be interesting for St. Louis, too.
The Yankees are built around pitching development, and MLB Pipeline says seven of their top 10 prospects are pitchers. Elmer Rodriguez and Carlos Lagrange are probably too valuable to move for a player with just over a year of control, but another arm could be in play.
Ben Hess, a right-hander with two plus breaking balls and a fastball that plays up, is one possibility. Henry Lalane, a tall lefty with a good changeup, is another.
Thatcher Hurd, Allen Facundo, and Bryce Cunningham are the other pitching prospects near the top of the Yankees’ system.
There’s also a familiar template here. At the 2022 deadline, the Cardinals and Yankees worked a need-for-need deal when St.
Louis sent Harrison Bader, who was a year and a half from free agency, to New York for Jordan Montgomery. That deal came together at the last second, and a similar structure could make sense again.
The Yankees don’t have a pitcher with Nootbaar’s team control, but St. Louis could add a prospect and aim for a controllable arm like Ryan Weathers or Will Warren.
The deadline is about to move fast, and the Cardinals look like they could be right in the middle of it. A deal with the Yankees would be a logical place to start.
In Other News...
Lance Lynn Just Floated A Cardinals Deadline Idea Fans Will Hate
The Cardinals are heading toward a trade deadline that could force some uncomfortable choices, especially if the front office decides its best path is to keep reloading with young, controllable pitching. Veteran voices around the game have already started sketching out the kind of deals that would fit that plan, and the conversation naturally turns to which established pieces St. Louis would even consider moving if the return is right.
Lance Lynn added a twist to that discussion by suggesting the Cardinals could create room for JJ Wetherholt if they were willing to part with one of their more established infield pieces. Masyn Winn has not been extended, which only adds to the sense that nothing is fully off the table, but any move involving him would have to bring back the kind of pitching help the Cardinals are clearly chasing as the deadline nears. [Read more 🡒]
Cardinals May Finally Have A Real Third Base Gamble Worth Watching
The Cardinals have spent enough time searching for stability at third base that any credible upgrade idea is going to draw attention, and Marcelo Mayer fits the kind of speculative swing that can at least make sense on paper. Bostons willingness to listen on a young infielder with real pedigree is notable in itself, and St. Louis has a history of doing business with the Red Sox, which only adds to the intrigue around a possible match.
Mayer was the fourth overall pick in the 2021 MLB Draft and entered this season still carrying the reputation of a premium prospect, even if his early major league results have been uneven. For a Cardinals club that needs help on the left side of the infield, the question now is whether it has enough to tempt Boston without stripping away too much from its own roster, and that is the part of the conversation that could get interesting fast. [Read more 🡒]
Cardinals May Be Ready To Move A Fan Favorite At Worst Time
With the Cardinals sitting in sell mode as the trade deadline approaches, the focus is starting to shift from what they might add to who could be on the move. Tim Britton of The Athletic floated the possibility that one of the clubs more recognizable outfield pieces could be dealt, a move that would clear a path for prospect Joshua Baez and signal that St. Louis is willing to think beyond the present standings.
The idea is a jarring one because Lars Nootbaar is still more than just another name on the roster. His production has dipped, but he remains a veteran presence and a clubhouse leader, the kind of player teams often lean on when things get messy. Trading him would not just be a roster decision, it would be a culture decision too, and that is where the Cardinals deadline calculus gets interesting. [Read more 🡒]