Untimely Death Of Cardinals Prospect Caused Ripple Effect, Still Impacts Team Today

Today marks a sad anniversary in Cardinals history that caused a chain reaction in the organization.

Apr 9, 2025; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; The St. Louis Cardinals equipment manger scrubs the team batting helmets before the game against the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images | Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

When you think of the St. Louis Cardinals, you naturally think of some of the best players to ever play Major League Baseball. Hall-of-Fame level players have graced the franchise and made their mark on the city and team.

But with even the best organizations in sports history, there are always some great "what ifs." For the Cardinals, the biggest one is former top prospect Oscar Taveras.

Taveras made his Major League debut in 2014, but tragically passed away in a car accident in the offseason. This led to a massive chain reaction that impacted the franchise for years to come and still impacts the franchise today.

Oscar Taveras' Death Caused Major Ripple Effect On Cards

Apr 13, 2015; St. Louis, MO, USA; St. Louis Cardinals teammates watch a tribute video to memorialize former Cardinal Oscar Taveras before the game against the Milwaukee Brewers at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-Imagn Images | Jasen Vinlove-Imagn Images

Taveras was only 22 at the time of his death. The Cardinals had planned to have him as their starting right fielder in 2015, but after his death, the Cardinals' offseason plans were altered. They were forced to trade for outfielder Jason Heyward, who spent one year with the team and left for the Chicago Cubs the following offseason.

From there, the Cardinals were a little short on outfielders, and especially a big bat. Taveras had been one of their most highly touted prospects since Albert Pujols, and the Cardinals banked heavily on him being a superstar.

But after the 2017 season, St. Louis lacked a middle-of-the-order bat, so they went out and traded for Marcell Ozuna, who spent two years with the team. Unfortunately, that put a dent in their pitching plans. Sandy Alcantara and Zac Gallen were sent to the Miami Marlins in that deal. Alcantara has won a Cy Young since being traded, and Gallen helped guide the Arizona Diamondbacks to the World Series in 2023.

And since then, the Cardinals haven't been able to develop quality starting pitching. They tried to fix this by acquiring Matthew Liberatore in 2020, but it cost them Randy Arozarena, who would be the ALCS MVP that season.

While Liberatore has shown great progress, the Cardinals have been left chasing pitching since the Ozuna deal, which likely would not have happened if Taveras were still on the roster.

So, in addition to the unimaginable pain caused by such a tragic loss, the death of Taveras also set the team back several years, and the impact can still be felt today, as the Cardinals haven't had an ace-caliber pitcher reach the Major Leagues in quite some time.

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