The St. Louis Cardinals, for the second time in a row and the fifth time in the last decade, missed the playoffs in 2024. Perhaps most ominously, a sense has crept in — among the fanbase and even the organization itself — that the Cardinals are no longer on the cutting edge. Other teams have passed them, and the franchise is in need of something it hasn’t resorted to often: a significant shake-up.
Indeed, the Cardinals announced, shortly after the season ended, that Chaim Bloom, the former chief baseball officer of the Red Sox, would take over from longtime president of baseball operations John Mozeliak a year from now. Bloom, who already served as an advisor in 2024, will spend a year restructuring the farm system. Mozeliak, as he said in his season-ending press conference, will be looking to trim payroll as the club invests more heavily in player development. The Cardinals are pivoting.
This is an unusual situation for the Cardinals, to say the least, as a team with only two losing seasons this century. And, to be fair, they’re still planning to be competitive in 2025. But they are doing so while foocusing on their young players, of which they have plenty, including Masyn Winn, Jordan Walker, Alec Burleson, Nolan Gorman, Victor Scott II, Thomas Saggese and Iván Herrera. More are coming up through the system, including left-hander Quinn Mathews, the Minor League Pitching Prospect of the Year.
The flip side is that some of St. Louis’ more established and costly veteran players could be trade candidates. It’s an opportunity, both for the Cardinals to bolster their stable of young talent, and for some playoff-hungry teams to fill holes or upgrade with an eye toward making a run in 2025.
There are four key Cardinals players who could be on the move — and who could change the complexion of any team in baseball. (That’s not even accounting for veteran pitchers like Miles Mikolas and Steven Matz, or younger players such as Brendan Donovan, Lars Nootbaar or Erick Fedde, who theoretically could be part of a larger package.)
Here is a closer look at that main quartet, what their value could be and which teams should be interested. It’s worth noting that the first three have no-trade clauses that they would have to waive to clear the way for a deal. (Each player is listed with his 2025 seasonal age.)
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