Cardinals Linked To Guardians' Shane Bieber Among Eight Trade Deadline Suiters

St. Louis would be the perfect landing spot for a former Cy Young winner

The St. Louis Cardinals have had an all-around disappointing season but the rotation has definitely been the weakest link, leading them to a National League-worst 26-37 record to open the season. 

The Cardinals' rotation currently is sporting a 4.66 ERA (ranking No. 20 in Major League Baseball) and does not have any notable reinforcements on the horizon.

If St. Louis wants to climb back into the NL Central race -- which still is possible given how weak the division is -- they'll need to make some notable moves. One potential fit is Guardians ace Shane Bieber, a 28-year-old with a Cy Young award under his belt and one more season of team control. 

"A quick survey of beat writers at The Athletic revealed the Los Angeles Angels (his hometown team), Baltimore Orioles, Texas Rangers, St. Louis Cardinals, Houston Astros, San Diego Padres, New York Mets and Los Angeles Dodgers could all express varying degrees of interest," The Athletic's Zack Meisel wrote Wednesday. "Some of those teams have needs in their rotation. Some of those teams have a surplus of young outfielders. Some have both."

The Cardinals appear to be a perfect fit for Bieber. They have a surplus of outfielders -- the Guardians' top need -- a strong overall farm system to complete a package and a desperate need for a frontline starter. 

Bieber has posted a 3.57 ERA with a 16.3% strikeout rate, 6.5% walk rate, .261 batting average against and 1.28 WHIP in 80 2/3 innings across a league-leading 13 starts and 338 batters faced this season. 

While Bieber would undoubtedly be the top arm on the Cardinals' staff, this season is being marked as a down year for the right-hander. If this is his floor, St. Louis should be begging Cleveland for his services as the trade deadline approaches.

St. Louis will almost certainly be in the mix for Bieber, as he fills a need for both this season and next year -- when they attempt to retool. 

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