Dylan Cease rumors: The best prospect all 5 potential suitors should be willing to trade

2) The Cardinals should be willing to trade Tink Hence in a Dylan Cease trade

The St. Louis Cardinals have already addressed their rotation by signing Sonny Gray, Lance Lynn, and Kyle Gibson. While they certainly added a lot of innings with those three, they still don't have much quality in their rotation to speak of. Dylan Cease would add to that.

While the Cardinals don't have a farm system as good as teams like the Orioles and Dodgers, they still have intriguing pieces the White Sox might want. Masyn Winn, their top prospect, should not be available because he's their starting shortstop entering the 2024 season. However, their No. 2 prospect, Tink Hence, should be.

Hence is one of the best pitching prospects in baseball, ranked 42nd on MLB Pipeline's Top 100. He has outstanding stuff headlined by a fastball that touches the upper 90s consistently, with the potential to one day be an ace. A team in need of pitching like the Cardinals shouldn't be eager to part with an arm as talented as Hence, but in an effort to win now, it makes sense.

The Cardinals are built around older players like Gray, Nolan Arenado, and Paul Goldschmidt. The best chance they have to win with them is by adding a pitcher like Cease. Giving up Hence would sting, but it might be a while before he's a pitcher they're thinking about making an impact in the majors anyway. He had a 5.47 ERA in 12 starts with AA Springfield, and he didn't surpass the five-inning mark a single time.

He has all the potential in the world, but this Cardinals team is trying to win in the short-term. Hence doesn't help with that. Cease certainly would.