Inside The Cardinals

Cardinals 4th-Year Slugger Emerging As Valuable Trade Chip

What will the Cardinals do ahead of the trade deadline?
Patrick McAvoy|
Mar 6, 2019; Tampa, FL, USA; St. Louis Cardinals hat and gloves lay in the dugout at George M. Steinbrenner Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-Imagn Images
Mar 6, 2019; Tampa, FL, USA; St. Louis Cardinals hat and gloves lay in the dugout at George M. Steinbrenner Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-Imagn Images | Kim Klement-Imagn Images

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St. Louis Cardinals

As the 2025 Major League Baseball season approached, the St. Louis Cardinals made it clear that they were going to give some of their young guys some runway as they wanted to get a look at what they have.

The Cardinals have been better than many expected them to be and currently have a 38-35 record on the campaign. The two guys that were talked about the most when it came to this idea of a runway is outfielder Jordan Walker and infielder Nolan Gorman.

Walker dealt with an injury that kept him out at the beginning of the June, but he has gotten pretty consistent at-bats when healthy. That hasn't been the case as much for Gorman. The 25-year-old has felt the crunch in the lineup with guys like Alec Burleson and Brendan Donovan thriving and Nolan Arenado still manning third base for the club.

Gorman has been good in June. He's slashing .333/.421/.667 with three homers and eight RBIs in 13 games played. For as good as he's been, it's hard to crack the lineup everyday. In June, Burleson has slashed .385/.411/.558 with two homers and seven RBIs in 14 games played. Donovan arguably has been the best second baseman in the National League overall and looks like he's heading for an All-Star nod.

Because of all of this, now may be the time to try to flip Gorman when his value is on the rise with a hot month. Gorman is just 25 years old so there's a real argument that it would be worth keeping him and waiting to see if a spot opens up -- for example if Arenado gets moved. But, Gorman's power brings value and if the Cardinals are still in the mix for a playoff spot around the deadline, trying to package him for controllable pitching could be a solid idea.

This is speculation and one person's opinion. The only opinion that really matters is that of the front office right now. This is one solution, but there certainly are others well. This isn't a knock at Gorman by any means. He's a talented slugger, but how do you make the lineup work every day?

More MLB: Cardinals Giving Phenom Another Shot In St. Louis

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Patrick McAvoy
PATRICK MCAVOY

Patrick McAvoy's experiences include local and national sports coverage at the New England Sports Network with a focus on baseball and basketball. Outside of journalism, Patrick also is pursuing an MBA at Brandeis University. After quickly rising as one of the most productive writers on the site, he expanded his reach to write for Baseball Essential, a national baseball site in Sports Illustrated Media Group. For all business/marketing inquiries regarding Inside The Cardinals, please reach out to Scott Neville: nevilles@merrimack.edu

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