St. Louis Cardinals: 3 trades to save the season

Max Scherzer may not be a rental after all by playing for his hometown team

The apple of the Cardinals’ eye has to be Washington Nationals ace Max Scherzer as the 2021 MLB trade deadline rapidly approaches. Though Washington has clawed its way back to .500, it seems as though only one team will be making the postseason out of the NL East this year, and that team is probably going to be the New York Mets. Therefore, Scherzer could easily be traded.

The future National Baseball Hall of Fame pitcher is entering free agency this winter. While he could re-up with the Nationals to close out the rest of his storied career, the Nationals may want to see if they can add a top prospect or two for him by way of a rental. Then again, there is a chance the St. Louis native could end up finishing the rest of his career for his hometown team.

As with Gibson, Scherzer played his college baseball in-state at Missouri. Scherzer grew up in the St. Louis suburb of Chesterfield. While the Cardinals will have to give up a top prospect for him, they might be able to avoid giving up Liberatore in exchange for him. The Cardinals should not give him up for Gibson, but would have to understand that is a prerequisite to get Berrios to St. Louis.

Overall, the Cardinals need to fix their starting rotation yesterday to have any chance of sniffing the postseason. They can go with the hot-hand having a career year in Gibson, go for a potential long-term solution in Berrios or they can try their luck with a future hall of famer who grew up in the area and see if he would sign with them long-term. Either way, the Cardinals do have options.

What players should the Cardinals look at adding before the trade deadline to save their season?