Latest Cardinals rumor suggest one big-name player won’t be in trade talks

The St. Louis Cardinals are on a similar trajectory to 2023. Even after their series win against the Los Angeles Angels, they are 18-25 and eight games back of first place in the NL Central.

The Cardinals' early season struggles have led many to believe that they will be sellers at the trade deadline. Even newly signed ace Sonny Gray has been mentioned as a potential trade piece should they initiate a fire sale.

However, Jon Heyman of the New York Post hosted a live chat on Bleacher Report and stated that while the Cardinals are struggling, he doesn't see them trading away Gray, citing St. Louis as a great fit for the veteran right-hander.

Sonny Gray seen as unlikely to be traded

Unless things get really bad, Gray is likely to stay in St. Louis. Even if the Cardinals are sellers this year at the deadline and trade away pieces such as Paul Goldschmidt, Nolan Arenado, Ryan Helsley, and Kyle Gibson, they would be wise to hold onto Gray.

In all likelihood, the Cardinals won't be bouncing back into contention this year, but they could potentially do a rebuild similar to that of the New York Yankees back in 2016. New York sold off several pieces and set themselves up to bounce back into contention the following year, which they did.

But Gray was just signed, and if the Cardinals want to turn things around quickly and contend again in 2025, it would be wise to hold onto Gray so they can have a foundation to build around in their rotation.

Goldschmidt and Arenado are a different story however. St. Louis has plenty of young position players with years of control that should ultimately be the building blocks for the future. The Cardinals' two corner infielders are both aging, with Goldschmidt unlikely to return after this season.

The Cardinals could get a haul for Arenado and possibly Goldschmidt as well if the latter has truly broken out of his slump and found his groove again.

But Gray should be off limits in trade talks, even with the Cardinals in need of a rebuild. The fans likely won't accept a rebuild that takes multiple years and would more than likely rather stomach something similar to what the Yankees did back in 2016. This would allow them to have a foundation to build around so they could return to contention next season.

The 34-year-old was signed to a three-year, $75 million contract back in November to be the team's ace. He's 5-2 with a 3.05 ERA to this point of the season.

We'll see how things shake out for the Cardinals. But even if they sell and initiate a rebuild, Gray should be considered untouchable.