Inside The Cardinals

Odds Are In Cardinals Favor To Complete Heartbreaking Trade Deadline Deal

St. Louis might have to say goodbye to a two-time All-Star this summer
Nate Hagerty|
May 8, 2024; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; A general view of the tarp on the field as storms move through the St. Louis region delaying a game between the St. Louis Cardinals and the New York Mets at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images
May 8, 2024; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; A general view of the tarp on the field as storms move through the St. Louis region delaying a game between the St. Louis Cardinals and the New York Mets at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images | Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

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St. Louis Cardinals

The St. Louis Cardinals are in complicated times, during which they're rebuilding but also motivated to shock naysayers by pushing for the playoffs.

Following a red-hot start to their season with a series sweep over the Minnesota Twins, the Cardinals have flamed out with a 10-14 record and are 4 1/2 games behind the first-place Chicago Cubs in the National League Central.

If St. Louis continues to trend downward, it's possible a fan favorite could be dealt before the July 31st trade deadline to help the franchise with its rebuilding journey.

"Whereas the Cardinals actually tried to trade Arenado over the winter, they reportedly shut down overtures toward Ryan Helsley," Bleacher Report's Zachary D. Rymer wrote Wednesday morning, suggesting that Helsley's trade stock is up. "This seemed an odd choice, given Helsley was coming off a 49-save season and the Cardinals never made any secret of their upcoming transitional phase. As such, the potential for the strategy to backfire in 2025 was real. It seems as if they'll be OK, though."

Helsley has logged three saves with a 2.25 ERA, 10-to-8 strikeout-to-walk ratio, .179 batting average against and a 1.63 WHIP in eight innings pitched across eight games for the Cardinals this season.

"Helsley has mostly been terrific so far, with his only blemish being a nightmare outing in Boston on April 6 that saw him walk four batters," Rymer continued. "He's otherwise sitting at 98.8 mph with his fastball and has yet to be barreled even once. All told, seven of the righty's eight outings have been scoreless and three of the five hits off him didn't even achieve "hard-hit" status at 95 mph off the bat. All signs, therefore, say this is still one of MLB's elite closers. Stock: Up"

The 2024 Trevor Hoffman NL Reliever of the Year will become a free agent this winter for the first time in his seven-year career. If Helsley has another dominant season, his market value could reach nine figures.

St. Louis should've tried to maximize Helsley's trade value by moving him over the offseason but dealing him this summer could work -- better late than never. If the Cardinals are far from playoff contention come July, they'd be foolish to abstain from shopping the two-time All-Star.

More MLB: Yankees Could Become Surprise Trade Destination For Cardinals Fan Favorite

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Nate Hagerty
NATE HAGERTY

Nate Hagerty joined “Inside The Cardinals” as a content creator to spread knowledge about his favorite childhood team. A hometown native of Boston, Hagerty chose at an early age of six years old to follow the St. Louis Cardinals. The miraculous season of 04’ for the Red Sox did not deter Hagerty from rooting against his hometown team, nor did it in 2013 against the Red Birds. For all business/marketing inquiries regarding Inside The Cardinals, please reach out to Scott Neville: nevilles@merrimack.edu 

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