Cardinals Fireballer 'On the Rise' With Trade Deadline Looming

The St. Louis Cardinals got back into the win column on Sunday with a much-needed 12-10 win over the Kansas City Royals.

The Cardinals entered the contest on Sunday with three straight losses, including two straight against the Royals. St. Louis has been in a bit of a rut over the last few days, but the Cardinals got back on track and are back to being seven games above .500 at 41-34. The Cardinals still have the top National League Wild Card spot as well right now. We're just about through June with just over one week left in the month. Then, trade season will really be here.

What Should St. Louis Do This Summer?

Jun 7, 2026; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Riley O'Brien (61) pitches against the Cincinnati Reds during the ninth inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images | Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

The 2026 MLB trade deadline is scheduled for Aug. 3. July will be crunch time and clubs will have to determine whether they want to add, subtract, or stay put. For St. Louis, that decision won't be made only based on the standings. This was a team that entered the season with the expectation that it would be the beginning of a reset period under Chaim Bloom. St. Louis has outperformed all expectations, which makes the question of what they're going to do even more complicated.

For St. Louis, there are a handful of guys to keep an eye on, despite the club winning. For example, MLB.com's Mark Feinsand mentioned Riley O'Brien on his list of nine potential trade chips "on the rise."

"Riley O'Brien, RHP, Cardinals," Feinsand wrote. "A successful reliever with four years of club control would seem to be exactly the player a young team would want to hold on to, but O’Brien is already 31 years old and his value is as high as it’s ever been. St. Louis’ surprising season has the Cards in playoff position, so selling off their closer might be a difficult decision, but given that this was viewed by many as a transition year for the Cardinals, capitalizing on O’Brien’s strong performance (3.68 ERA, 17-for-21 in save opportunities) could be the right move.

"The hard-throwing O’Brien has been a ground-ball machine (93rd percentile in the league) while ranking in the 89th percentile in walk percentage.'

O'Brien kicked off the 2026 season as one of the hottest relievers in baseball. He has cooled off of late and currently has a 4.18 ERA in 32 appearances. What makes him most valuable is the fact that he's under team control through the 2030 season. He didn't allow his first earned run of the season until April 25. The talent is there. The question is whether he'll still be toeing the rubber for St. Louis on Aug. 4.

Add us as a preferred source on Google