Cardinals rumors: Grading 3 potential Paul Goldschmidt blockbuster trades

Grade this trade: B-

For the Cardinals to land a trade package with three of the Phillies top-six prospects, including the No. 31-ranked prospect in all of baseball, they need two things. First, they need what the Phils want. Goldschmidt is one of the best hitters in baseball, and Carlson is a solid outfielder under contract for the next few seasons. That brings value, which allows Philadelphia to feel easy about adding a player like Rojas, who is already in Double-A, to this trade.

Abel is one of the better pitching prospects in baseball, as previously mentioned, and McGarry has electric stuff and a triple-digits fastball. From the Cardinals perspective, this trade is a home run. From Dave Dombrowski’s perspective, he’d probably prefer to give up less. Yet, that’s not how Dave Dombrowski operates. An aggressive front office helps make trades like this happen.

St. Louis secures two members of their future rotation, while the Phillies make the trades necessary to take the next step in this year’s postseason — the World Series — or so they hope.