Time to panic: 3 Cardinals trades to make after John Mozeliak comments

MLB Rumors: Cardinals should trade Jordan Hicks

Give the Cardinals some credit, the one thing they’ve done right this season is to stick with Jordan Hicks when the entire fanbase was calling for his head. Hicks has a fastball that can reach up to 104 MPH at its best, and if he can ever locate consistently could be one of the best relief pitchers in all of baseball.

Bullpen help, like the starting pitching market, could be tough to come by on deadline day. The longer St. Louis holds onto Hicks — allowing him to put up respectable numbers leading up to late July — the better, as he’ll fetch a decent haul by then.

After the Cardinals dropped the London Series to the Chicago Cubs, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic floated Hicks as a trade possibility.

“As things currently stand, the obvious choice for the Cardinals at the deadline, the safest choice, would be to trade their top potential free agents — starters Jordan Montgomery and Jack Flaherty, and closer Jordan Hicks,” Rosenthal said. “(John Mozeliak), meeting with reporters in London on Friday said, ‘The message to our fan base is that we’re not looking to blow up this team but we are looking to find ways to improve this team.'”

Hicks is in his final season under contract, and will be a free agent this winter. For the right team, he could even be retained on an affordable asking price.