Cardinals Lefty Has Interest From Yankees, Mariners, Orioles, More

When will the trade market start to thaw around Major League Baseball?

Right now, things are a bit unpredictable. The vast majority of the biggest free agents of the offseason are still available, including Kyle Tucker, Alex Bregman, Bo Bichette, Cody Bellinger, and Framber Valdez, among many others. We’ve seen a few trades pop up around the league, including from the St. Louis Cardinals with Sonny Gray, but the markets are sluggish, to say the least.

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Rumors and reports are out there, but the actual transactions haven’t followed yet. For St. Louis, you’ve likely heard a lot about Brendan Donovan or Nolan Arenado this offseason, but they aren’t the only trade chips. JoJo Romero is another guy who could bring back a pretty penny.

The Cardinals have a handful of big-time trade candidates

Sep 22, 2025; San Francisco, California, USA; St. Louis Cardinals pitcher JoJo Romero (59) delivers a pitch against the San Francisco Giants during the ninth inning at Oracle Park. Mandatory Credit: D. Ross Cameron-Imagn Images | D. Ross Cameron-Imagn Images

Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported on Thursday that the Baltimore Orioles, New York Yankees, and Seattle Mariners are teams that have shown interest in Romero.

"Lefty JoJo Romero and infielder Brendan Donovan continue to be popular trade targets for teams," Goold wrote on Thursday. "Romero will be a free agent a year from now, while Donovan, the Cardinals’ lone All-Star, has two years of control remaining before free agency.

"As a run on lefty relievers began in recent days, the Baltimore Orioles were one of the teams shopping with potential interest in Romero. The Yankees and Mariners, among others have also had some contact with the Cardinals about Romero."

The Orioles are a team that has been aggressive this offseason, as shown by the additions of Pete Alonso and Ryan Helsley. The Yankees have been quiet so far this offseason, but they are always lurking. The Mariners have been connected to Romero a handful of times this offseason, including by The Seattle Times' Adam Jude.

So, if the Cardinals are going to flip Romero, which team would be the best option? Arguably, that would be the Mariners. Seattle has been heavily linked to Brendan Donovan this offseason as well. It has been reported that the Cardinals are searching for two top prospects for Donovan. If the Cardinals could pair Donovan and Romero together, that surely would bring back an intriguing package.

The Orioles and Yankees surely could put together strong packages for the lefty, but the fact that the Mariners have been interested in both Romero and Donovan should be worth exploring to maximize the Cardinals' return. For Seattle, it would be nice to land prospects like Jurrangelo Cijntje and Lazaro Montes. But would packaging Donovan and Romero together be enough to shake one of the team's big league starting pitchers loose? That would be better.

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