Cardinals rumors: Starting pitcher could be traded, O’Neill trade, Walker excelling

Jack Flaherty keeps getting mentioned as a trade piece

Ken Rosenthal’s latest column for The Athletic talked about the Cardinals at length and the current struggles they’re facing. Rosenthal addressed the fact that the Cardinals have publicly stated they want to hold leading up to the deadline, but it seems as though his intel or instincts don’t completely believe that.

Rosenthal threw out Jack Flaherty as a possible trade piece (subscription required) for St. Louis. At this point, it’s pure speculation from Rosenthal, but keep in mind he’s well plugged in and informed, so there could be something driving that.

His reasoning makes sense, Flaherty is a free agent after this year and he hasn’t gelled with the team. Rosenthal points out that Flaherty’s comments about called pitches partially seemed to have led to Willson Contreras’s temporary demotion early in this season.

Flaherty has been below league average this season but has pitched better than his defense makes him look. His 4.64 ERA is higher than his 4.34 FIP, though he has a very high 1.588 WHIP.

The starting rotation for St. Louis has struggled all around, but Flaherty has shown flashes of dominance previously and could be a persuasive item to dangle in a potential deal at the deadline. Flaherty has spent his entire career in St. Louis thus far and a late-season change of scenery, coupled with better play, could help him land a better deal than he otherwise might.