MLB Rumors: Cardinals trade doors open, Braves trade deadline shift, absurd Jackson Holliday trade

MLB Rumors: Dakota Hudson could be secret sauce for blockbuster Cardinals trade

All signs still pretty definitively point toward the St. Louis Cardinals opting to be sellers at the trade deadline. Even with some solid play of late, the Redbirds are still 13 games below .500 for the season and are 9.5 games out of first place in the NL Cetnral. Put simply, it’s not a great spot to be in.

One of the concerns for the Cardinals now and moving forward, though, is the starting pitching situation. As such, there is at least the potential that the organization could have reservations about trading the likes of Jordan Montgomery or Jack Flaherty, despite both hurlers being set to hit free agency this offseason.

Perhaps a newcomer to the big-league roster could ultimately alleviate those concerns and, as such, help the Cardinals facilitate a big-time trade before Aug. 1, though. That player is Dakota Hudson.

The 28-year-old right-hander was called up as the 27th man for a split-doubleheader against the Yankees this past weekend and, in 2.2 innings of relief work, he was dominant, allowing just one base-runner and not allowing a single run. And as Cardinals insider Derrick Goold noted, he could now be in line to start on Wednesday to fill an open spot in the rotation.

Hudson is no stranger to the big leagues as he started 26 games for the Cardinals last season, posting a 4.45 ERA and 1.45 WHIP on the year. But he struggled in the spring with his control, which ultimately led to him being optioned to Triple-A. After some work and an injury that allowed him to get his health in a good spot, he has started showing extremely positive signs.

If this is something with staying power, though, Hudson could be immensely valuable to St. Louis. He’s still under club control until 2025 but, more importantly, that also opens the door for the Cards to feel better about trading Flaherty, Montgomery, or perhaps even another option as they’ll be adding an unexpected answer to the starting pitching problem.