Cardinals: An easy argument against trading for Juan Soto

The St. Louis Cardinals might find themselves better positioned now and in the future if they don’t trade for Juan Soto.

The St. Louis Cardinals remain one of the likeliest teams to end up with Juan Soto before Tuesday’s MLB trade deadline passes. While they could certainly use him now and for the foreseeable future after a contract extension, there’s an old cliché about putting all of your eggs in one basket that could steer them in another direction.

Do the Cardinals use their large group of talented young players and prospects to add Soto to the roster? Or do they stick with a more practical approach and fill several needs?

It’s not necessarily an easy choice. However, if we look at how much Soto would cost and the fact that he won’t solve their greatest need right now, it becomes clearer.

The Cardinals need more than a Juan Soto trade to make them World Series favorites

Soto hitting in the same lineup with Paul Goldschmidt, Nolan Arenado, and the rest of the crew makes St. Louis a tough group to get through. They could power their way through the postseason and to a championship. They could also find those same bats go cold and end up with some low-scoring losses.

Pitching doesn’t always win championships. Depth, on the other hand, can.

A trade for Soto would be the one big swing by the Cardinals to put them in a different stratosphere. Instead of adding him, the Cardinals could swing deals for a top starting pitcher and maybe even a lesser arm. They could bolster their bullpen further with an arm and maybe even add a significant bat a few rungs below Soto but an impactful one nonetheless.

There is an abundance of arguments to be made for and against the Cardinals trading for Soto. The best against it is how you need more than one player to win a championship. Baseball requires a full team effort.

Soto will hit only once every nine chances the Cardinals step up to the plate, won’t pitch an inning, and will always be a single bad sneeze away from throwing out his back. Trading for him is the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that St. Louis can pass on.

When it comes specifically to the World Series, you never know who the star will be. The Cardinals need a Jorge Soler, Steve Pearce, or even a David Freese to step up and be the star. Those guys are readily available. They also won’t set your franchise back.