Cardinals 27-Year-Old Veteran Could Be on the Move This Summer

The St. Louis Cardinals certainly could end up making a few moves this summer.

Apr 27, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; St. Louis Cardinals catcher Pedro Pages (43) runs the bases after hitting a solo home run off Pittsburgh Pirates relief pitcher Dennis Santana (60) during the ninth inning at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: David Dermer-Imagn Images | David Dermer-Imagn Images

The St. Louis Cardinals arguably are going to be the most interesting team in baseball this summer when it comes to the 2026 Major League Baseball trade deadline.

This is a club that would be in the playoffs if the season ended today. The Cardinals are 31-27 on the season and have the No. 3 National League Wild Card spot. But this is also the same team that traded four veteran players away this past offseason and is clearly in the early stages of a rebuild/reset period with Chaim Bloom now leading the charge as the team's president of baseball operations.

The Cardinals are playing well enough to hope that they will add around the edges, but it's very possible we could also see a few pieces go. Bloom has talked about trades a bit and has alluded to the fact that the early-season success isn't completely overhauling the strategy of development.

While hosting a question-and-answer session with fans, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch was asked about the trade deadline and acknowledged that if the club sells or tries to "thread the needle between seller and contender" we could see some veterans go for younger, controllable options. One name that was mentioned by Goold as a potential trade chip that was interesting was catcher Pedro Pagés.

The Cardinals Veteran Will Be Someone To Watch

Apr 27, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; St. Louis Cardinals catcher Pedro Pages (43) is congratulated in the dugout after hitting a solo home run off against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the ninth inning at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: David Dermer-Imagn Images | David Dermer-Imagn Images

"Yes, if the Cardinals pivot into selling at the deadline or try to thread the needle between seller and contender, they’ll look to move players for younger, controllable players with some high upside," Goold wrote. "Lars Nootbaar, JoJo Romero, Riley O’Brien, Dustin May, Pedro Pagés, and Ryne Stanek are all players who could be involved in those moves, if the offers arrive from other teams. Not yet sure if or how Nolan Gorman would factor into those discussions. The Cardinals will look to do at the deadline what they did all winter. Accumulate minor-league depth."

The Cardinals just promoted Jimmy Crooks and essentially have demoted Pagés to being the No. 3 catcher on the roster behind the prospect and Iván Herrera. Pagés is certainly beloved in the Cardinals' clubhouse, though. He prepares well and the pitchers love him. Of the names mentioned, Nootbaar, Romero and May are all old news, for example. They have been talked about as trade candidates a lot over the last few months. That isn't the case as much with Pagés, although the idea makes sense. Catcher is a position of surplus for the organization.

The trade deadline will here on Aug. 3 and it will certainly be an interesting day for St. Louis.