Cardinals: 3 Opening Day starters who should be replaced by the trade deadline

At some point, the Cardinals will need to consider making some significant changes to their roster if their struggles continue.

As the July 30 trade deadline looms, the Cardinals could be in for a roster overhaul depending on where they sit in the playoff race.

Entering Thursday, St. Louis is eight games back of the division-leading Brewers and 8.5 games behind a Wild Card spot. They’ve underperformed thus far, and haven’t been able to get on any sort of roll as of late.

They’re coming off a three-game sweep of the Diamondbacks, who have the worst record in the majors, but the Cardinals have gone 11-22 against teams with a record above .500 this season. It’s been a case poor offense, inconsistent starting pitching, and some injuries to key players that has resulted in a combination of losing.

That isn’t The Cardinals Way, so it shouldn’t be long before change is made on the current roster.

3) Matt Carpenter is struggling at a high price for the Cardinals

It wasn’t long ago Matt Carpenter was a three-time All-Star and beloved among the St. Louis faithful. He was a big part of the team’s success from 2012-2015, but he’s been a shell of his former self in recent years.

This season is no different, and Carpenter is currently slashing .171/.309/.293 with three home runs and 17 RBIs in 149 plate appearances. It’s likely the Cardinals would have found a way to part ways with Carpenter by now, but they’re stuck with his contract which puts him at the team’s third-highest paid player on the 2021 payroll.

Carpenter will earn $18.5 million this season, and it’s more than likely his $2 million buyout will be exercised for 2022. At this rate, the only way St. Louis will be able to trade Carpenter is to send him away in a salary dump. This would be similar to their trade of Dexter Fowler in the offseason where they paid a significant portion of his salary for the sole purpose of opening up a roster spot.