Rival Teams Already Eyeing 3 Cardinals Amid Electric Start to 2026

The St. Louis Cardinals are going to have some difficult decisions to make this season.

May 9, 2026; San Diego, California, USA; St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Dustin May (3) throws a pitch during the sixth inning against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park. Mandatory Credit: David Frerker-Imagn Images | David Frerker-Imagn Images

The St. Louis Cardinals are one of the hottest — and most fun — teams in Major League Baseball right now, but unfortunately that doesn't mean that the club is guaranteed to not make changes over the course of the season.

St. Louis is 27-18 on the season and is tied with the Milwaukee Brewers for second place in the National League Central. The Cardinals and Brewers are both just 1 1/2 games behind the first-place Chicago Cubs. If the season were to end today, the Cardinals would be in the playoffs. The Cardinals, Brewers, and San Diego Padres are all tied for the top National League Wild Card spot. The Pittsburgh Pirates are the closest team on the outside looking in on the Wild Card race and are 3 1/2 games behind the Cardinals, Brewers and Padres.

What Will The Cardinals Do?

May 10, 2026; San Diego, California, USA; St. Louis Cardinals relief pitcher Riley O'Brien (61) delivers during the ninth inning against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park. Mandatory Credit: Denis Poroy-Imagn Images | Denis Poroy-Imagn Images

While this is the case, there is a lot of season left and Cardinals president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom has already insinuated that the strategy of the season isn't different despite the early-season success. It's not the wrong idea in the slightest. You can't rush a rebuild or completely change course on a strategy that is working. But this club has been the most fun Cardinals team in years, dating back to 2022 at least. If the Cardinals keep winning, we hopefully won't see any significant subtractions this season. If things take a turn before the Aug. 3 trade deadline, that's when we could see changes.

On Sunday, USA Today's Bob Nightengale reported that teams are currently keeping a "close eye" on Riley O’Brien, JoJo Romero and Dustin May.

"While the St. Louis Cardinals’ surprising success may thwart plans for selling at the trade deadline, teams still are keeping a close eye on closer Riley O’Brien and pitchers JoJo Romero and Dustin May," Nightengale wrote.

None of these names should come as much of a shock. All three have been the subject of trade rumors for a while, but it is interesting to see rumors already out there on May 17. It's also a bit surprising that outfielder Lars Nootbaar wasn't mentioned. If the Cardinals keep winning, maybe it will let the Cardinals keep the roster together through the season. We're certainly not going to see any massive additions coming to town, unless they are internal pieces from down in the minors.

It will be interesting to see how the Cardinals handle these next few months because they seemingly have captured lightning in a bottle. There's something to the idea of not messing with the chemistry of a roster — which this team clearly has. Hopefully, the club simply keeps winning and shuts down all the noise.