3 ways the St. Louis Cardinals can initiate a potential deadline sale

The St. Louis Cardinals are a team that doesn't seem to have a set strategy yet for the trade deadline. They could be buyers, or they could be sellers.

Given that they are under .500, many have suspected that they will be sellers rather than buyers, though nothing is set in stone just yet. We'll have to see how they play in the coming weeks before we know for sure what their strategy will be.

If they sell, there are several different ways they can go about it. Here are three ways they could initiate a sell at the deadline.

3. Fringe sell

A fringe sale is basically what the Cardinals did last year when they fell to 47-60 just three days prior to the deadline. What this means is that teams will trade players on expiring contracts so as not to lose them for absolutely nothing in free agency.

In the Jordan Montgomery deal with the Texas Rangers, the Cardinals got a few prospects from the eventual World Series champions, as well as reliever John King.

By doing this, the Cardinals stayed focused on contending in the future and kept their stars such as Paul Goldschmidt, Nolan Arenado, and Willson Contreras. They also held onto all of their young stars like Brendan Donovan, Nolan Gorman, Alec Burleson, and Lars Nootbaar.

The Cardinals could do that this year for players like Kyle Gibson, Lance Lynn, Andrew Kittredge, and Goldschmidt, all of whom are on expiring deals. They have set themselves up for this possibility if things go south in the coming weeks.

They wouldn't receive massive hauls for any of these players, but they could at the very least restock the farm system with young players. Their current farm system doesn't have a top prospect that is close to being Major League ready.

2. Buy and sell

Cardinals insider Jeff Jones proposed the possibility of the team buying and selling at the same time, though that this is an unlikely approach.

The Cardinals could still look to trade Ryan Helsley, who would bring back a haul of talent in exchange. This would be similar to what the Milwaukee Brewers did with Josh Hader and what the Seattle Mariners did with Paul Sewald.

At the same time, they could also add certain pieces to keep the team afloat and give them a shot at the postseason. Perhaps they could use some of what they get for Helsley to acquire a top-level starter such as Jesus Luzardo or Justin Verlander.

This is the least likely approach they'll take, but it is still possible. Jones notes that the Cardinals would have to be blown away by an offer for Helsley in order to trade him, especially if they still want to do some buying to improve the team.

Helsley leads the Major Leagues in saves with 22 following a scoreless appearance in the ninth inning on Wednesday night, and he is likely to be an All-Star later this season if he continues his dominance.

1. Yankees-style sell

Back in 2016, the New York Yankees were above .500 but far back in the standings. So, they chose to sell at the trade deadline. However, they didn't completely tear things down. They got solid hauls in exchange for everybody they traded and were able to bounce right back into contention in 2017.

If the Cardinals sell by trading Helsley, they can get a return of Major League-ready players, but also set themselves up to contend in 2025.

Interestingly enough, the Yankees played better after selling and finished only five games out in the Wild Card race in 2016. That's not to say the Cardinals would automatically play better, but it would help them get a quick turnaround.

They could also still sell off pieces on expiring deals and at least get something in return for them rather than just lose them in free agency for nothing more than a compensation draft pick, and that's assuming they have the qualifying offer attached to them.

The Yankees retool worked quite well. In addition to making the postseason in 2017, they didn't miss October again until last season, so there is merit to this approach for the Cardinals.