Cardinals Linked To Marlins Fireballer As Trade Speculation Heats Up

The Cardinals have made winter deals with the Marlins before.

Apr 24, 2024; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; A detailed view of a Miami Marlins hat and glove in the dugout before a game against the Atlanta Braves at Truist Park. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

The St. Louis Cardinals are going to be one of Major League Baseball’s busiest teams starting on Sunday. The Winter Meetings will kick off in Orlando, and the Cardinals have plenty of trades to make.

But even though they are unloading talent ahead of 2026, that doesn’t mean they won’t look to add some pieces as well. They need starting pitching and can’t go into the season without at least one proven starter at the top of the rotation.

John Denton of MLB.com listed a few starters that the Cardinals could acquire via trade. One of them was a high-upside arm with the Miami Marlins, Eury Perez.

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Could Cardinals Boost Rotation With Trade For Eury Perez?

Sep 21, 2025; Arlington, Texas, USA; Miami Marlins starting pitcher Eury Perez (39) throws the ball during the first inning against the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Field. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Perez made 20 starts this season with the Marlins, going 7-6 with a 4.25 ERA and striking out 105 batters over 95 ⅓ innings pitched. He is still only 22 years old and is under club control through 2029, so it might make sense for St. Louis to target him.

The Marlins might be a little more aggressive this winter, which could lead to them trading some starting pitching depth for offense, and the Cardinals have a lot of left-handed bats that Miami could show interest in.

The Cardinals and Marlins have also made trades with one another at the Winter Meetings in the past. In 2017, the Cardinals acquired Marcell Ozuna from the Marlins for Zac Gallen and Sandy Alcantara, so it wouldn’t be too much of a stretch for the two teams to make another deal.

Perez is young and still has several years of club control, and that is what the Cardinals are looking for as they target young pitching. He also averaged 9.9 strikeouts per nine innings this past season and 10.6 per nine in his rookie season, 2023.

There is plenty of upside with Perez, and the Cardinals would be receiving somebody with a high ceiling as they look for some better options to bolster their rotation after the Sonny Gray trade.

They’ll be active at the Winter Meetings, and it will be interesting to see what Chaim Bloom has up his sleeve as the offseason activity starts to pick up in Orlando. The Cardinals have moves to make and needs to address.

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