What Were The Cardinals Thinking With Questionable Last-Minute Trade?

The St. Louis Cardinals made a series of trades to bolster their farm system at the trade deadline, but surprisingly acquired a veteran reliever as well.

Mar 3, 2017; West Palm Beach, FL, USA; A view of St. Louis Cardinals hats and gloves on the steps of the dugout in the game against the Washington Nationals at The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

St. Louis Cardinals president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom made the smart decision to sell at the trade deadline despite the team's surprising success this season.

The Cardinals' success has been one of the biggest surprises of the season as the team prepared to enter a full-scale rebuild toward the end of last season. Since Bloom joined the Cardinals organization, he has prioritized acquiring young talent to restock St. Louis' farm system, and with the team focusing on player development, multiple young stars like Jordan Walker and JJ Wetherholt have flourished.

Though the Cardinals were in the thick of the playoff race for the majority of the season, a slow start to the second half of the year solidified their decision to sell at the deadline. St. Louis' first move at the deadline was to trade Dustin May and JoJo Romero to the Milwaukee Brewers in exchange for prospects Alexander Frias (No. 4) and Josiah Ragsdale (No. 10).

Trading for Caleb Ferguson was a surprising move

Aug 4, 2026; Bronx, New York, USA; St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Caleb Ferguson (54) delivers a pitch during the eighth inning against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Cardinals followed up that deal by trading veteran outfielder Lars Nootbaar to the Arizona Diamondbacks for right-hander Daniel Eagen (AA) and left-hander Sando Santana (AA), who are two of three players St. Louis brought back with the deal. Both deals similarly brought back quality prospects to bolster the Cardinals' farm system. Surprisingly, the Cardinals weren't done after those two deals. St. Louis made one more trade with the Cincinnati Reds, acquiring left-handed veteran reliever Caleb Ferguson in exchange for $250,000 in international bonus pool money.

Ferguson, 30, is an eight-year MLB veteran with plenty of experience and could give the Cardinals a consistent piece out of the bullpen down the stretch. The left-handed reliever has a solid 3.76 ERA through 27 appearances this season and threw a scoreless outing in his first game in St. Louis.

Though trading for Ferguson won't define Bloom's tenure with the Cardinals, especially with the 30-year-old reliever on an expiring contract, it was still an interesting and somewhat questionable move. Trading for a veteran pitcher contradicts St. Louis' logic of focusing on the future and bolstering its farm system. Despite not giving up any prospects or current players, the international bonus pool money provides the team opportunities to secure amateur talent.

Considering the Cardinals are still realistically within striking distance of securing a wild-card playoff spot, perhaps trading for Ferguson was a way for the team to remain competitive down the stretch without giving up many resources. From that lens, the Ferguson trade begins to look less questionable.