Time to panic: 3 Cardinals trades to make after John Mozeliak comments
By Mark Powell
MLB Rumors: Cardinals should trade a pair of starting pitchers
More likely to land St. Louis a respectable return are the likes of Jordan Montgomery and Jack Flaherty, if made available. Flaherty is a former ace who has fallen out of favor in the Cards organization. He’s a former Opening Day starter and, should he rediscover his breaking pitches, could be a decent mid-level starter for a contending team.
Montgomery, meanwhile, has had far more success this season and could be one of the better starting pitchers on the market. The former Yankees hurler has a 3.23 ERA on the season and has been the Cardinals most consistent starting pitcher. While it would be tough to trade Montgomery just a season after acquiring him from the New York Yankees for Harrison Bader, he will be a free agent after this season. St. Louis would risk losing him for nothing, and he’s far too valuable of an asset to hang onto.
The starting pitching market is barren as of this writing, with Eduardo Rodriguez of the Detroit Tigers viewed as the best, most likely starter traded. Adding Montgomery and Flaherty to that mix could allow the Cards to land some decent prospect capital in return, especially should they package both to a pitching-needy contender.