The St. Louis Cardinals missed the postseason after finishing 83-79 during the regular season. This marks the fifth time in the last nine years that St. Louis is on the outside looking in during October.
Now, the team looks prepared to jumpstart a rebuild of sorts. This means that several key players could be shipped out as the Cardinals try to prioritize their young core.
Closer Ryan Helsley is a piece that could be traded. Joel Reuter of Bleacher Report lists the All-Star Closer as the eighth best trade chip this coming offseason.
Perhaps St. Louis could trade him to the Baltimore Orioles, who need a closer.
Helsley led Major League Baseball with 49 saves and even set the Cardinals all-time single season record in that category.
But he is a player on an expiring contract and his trade value has never been as high as it is now. This is why it would make sense for St. Louis to trade him.
The Orioles need a closer and have several young, cost-controlled pitchers that are Major League ready and could help the Cardinals almost immediately. Perhaps they could even help St. Louis expedite their rebuild and get back into contention as soon as possible.
Cade Povich and Chayce McDermott are two pitchers that could be had in a deal such as this.
Helsley will be generating a ton of interest in trade talks. We’ll see what kind of haul the Cardinals can bring back if they do decide to shop him.
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