The St. Louis Cardinals have already been shopping All-Star third baseman Nolan Arenado around the league, finding multiple trade partners only to have him block a deal. With Arenado seemingly locking himself into the Cardinals roster, the team is now exploring another trade option.
St. Louis announced a changing of the guard at the top of the organization this offseason. Chaim Bloom was hired as an advisor to the president of baseball operations John Mozeliak. While Mozeliak is retaining his title for the 2025 season, Bloom is the architect of the Cardinals’ future and will take Mozeliak’s title in 2026.
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- St. Louis Cardinals payroll 2025 (FanGraphs): $148 million, 17th in MLB
The organization’s decision came after an 83-win season that resulted in the team missing the playoffs for the second consecutive year. An even worse indictment of Mozeliak’s recent work, the Cardinals haven’t won a playoff game since Game 1 of the 2020 NL Wild Card Series.
With the Cardinals’ farm system getting worse and the team’s player development issues raising concerns about their long-term future, Bloom was brought in with the franchise hoping he could recreate what he did with the Boston Red Sox who now have one of the best farm systems in MLB. One step towards fixing things in St. Louis is bringing in more prospects.
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According to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the Cardinals are “open” to trading starting pitcher Erick Fedde before Opening Day 2025. The incentive to move Fedde is also tied to the club’s desire to open up a rotation spot for Michael McGreevy and to reduce the Cardinals payroll this season.
- Erick Fedde stats (ESPN): 3.72 ERA, 1.20 WHIP, 46-18 K-BB ratio, .720 OPS allowed in 55.2 innings pitched with the St. Louis Cardinals
St. Louis acquired Fedde from the Chicago White Sox ahead of the MLB trade deadline last season, as part of a multi-player deal that sent Tommy Edman to the Los Angeles Dodgers. The 6-foot-4 righty finished the season with a career-best 3.30 ERA and 1.16 WHIP in 177.1 innings pitched.
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- Erick Fedde contract (Spotrac): $7.5 million salary in 2025, MLB free agent in 2025-’26
Given the number of clubs still in need of pitching depth, there should be a relatively solid trade market for Fedde depending on what the Cardinals want for a 32-year-old starting pitcher on a one-year deal. If he isn’t moved before Opening Day, Fedde is an obvious trade candidate this summer.