Could Cardinals Actually Buy? It May Not Be the Craziest Idea

It's certainly going to be an interesting month for the St. Louis Cardinals.

Sep 5, 2023; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; A detailed view of the hat and glove of St. Louis Cardinals second baseman Nolan Gorman (not pictured) before a game against the Atlanta Braves at Truist Park. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Connect

The St. Louis Cardinals kicked off a 14-game gauntlet on Tuesday night in which they are going to face off against the Atlanta Braves, Chicago Cubs and the Milwaukee Brewers on a high note.

St. Louis took down the Braves, 5-3, and now is 44-38 on the season. The Cardinals are six games above .500 and currently have the No. 3 National League Wild Card spot with just over one month to go until the Aug. 3 trade deadline. Between now and the deadline, the Cardinals have 30 games left to go and then will have to decide whether it wants to add, sell, or stay put.

President of baseball operations Chaim Bloom has said the Cardinals aren't going to take any "shortcuts" this summer. He said the Cardinals will have to "factor in everything" when making these deadline decisions, but don't expect to see the Cardinals mortgage the future in favor of the present.

On Wednesday, The Athletic's Tim Britton and Chad Jennings shared a column in which they put the clubs around the league into tiers from buyers to sellers. The perception of the Cardinals has completely shifted to the point that Britton and Jennings listed the Cardinals in their third tier and listed them among the teams who are: "trending to the buy side."

The Perception Has Shifted After St. Louis

Aug 28, 2022; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Chaim Bloom, Chief Baseball Officer of the Boston Red Sox on the field before the game between the Boston Red Sox and the Tampa Bay Rays at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports | USA TODAY Sports

"Tier 3: Trending to the buy side: Chicago White Sox, SP, RP. Texas Rangers, RP. Houston Astros, OF, SP. St. Louis Cardinals, SP. Athletics, SP. Miami Marlins, OF, CIF. Pittsburgh Pirates, OF, RP. Imagine it’s Opening Day and you’ve been told that these seven teams will be grouped together at the end of June. What sort of list would you imagine it to be?"

It's nice to see the Cardinals in this light after three straight tough seasons. They're viewed very favorably right now. It's important to note, again, that St. Louis isn't going to sacrifice the future for the present. Bloom has made that point clear. But this club isn't going to be ignored. New Cardinals CEO Bill DeWitt III noted that if the Cardinals can keep up their success from the season in the first half, it "could change a little bit" how the front office views the club.

If the Cardinals can keep it up, it would be nice to add a starter to the back of the rotation. We're certainly not going to see some sort of big addition, like Tarik Skubal or Freddy Peralta. The club has made it clear over and over the future won't be sacrificed. But adding a depth starter could also be good, if they can keep up their success.