Recently, Jim Bowden of The Athletic wrote a piece about the top 15 trade chips this offseason. Two of them were Cardinals, and Ryan Helsley was No. 4 on the list. At this point, we know it’s highly likely that the Cardinals will be trading Helsley in the coming weeks. Bowden noted that his market may not pick up until after Tanner Scott signs somewhere, but that it will be active.
What I found interesting was the two teams he listed as the logical fits. Those teams were the Orioles and Red Sox. Both are in need of a closer and have solid prospects in their system. But it also got me thinking about which team could give the Cardinals the better haul.
I actually think it’s hard to say, because we saw at the trade deadline the packages selling teams were getting for their rental relievers. Helsley would be just that and then some, having just recorded 49 saves. But let’s take a look at what the Cardinals might be able to get.
Baltimore Orioles
Looking at the Orioles, they have a ton of good prospects, some of which could be Major League ready very soon. Coby Mayo is their top prospect, though I doubt they would give him up for just one year of Helsley. Still, teams were giving up some of their top prospects for rental relievers. The Orioles themselves gave up Connor Norby for Trevor Rogers.
I think the Cardinals need to acquire at least one cost-controlled MLB ready pitcher in a potential Helsley deal, and the Orioles have Chayce McDermott, who could be an option. They also have Samuel Basallo, Dylan Beavers, Vance Honeycutt and Enrique Bradfield Jr.
There’s not a scenario where the Cardinals would land all of those guys, but there’s a lot of value there with the Orioles No. 2-6 prospects.
Boston Red Sox
The Red Sox are an interesting case as well. The most interesting part to me is that the guy who put together that farm system is Chaim Bloom, and he’s set to take over for John Mozeliak as Cardinals president of baseball operations at the end of next year.
Why is that interesting, you ask? Well, the Cardinals are focusing on youth in 2025, and they’re trying to set the stage for Bloom’s takeover. I also have to believe that regardless of where Helsley is traded, Bloom will have some input on a potential package. At the same time, Boston has a ton of solid prospects, some of whom were drafted by Bloom. He knows that system very well and could advise the Cardinals on which prospects to go for in a potential Helsley trade with Boston.
At this point, few, if any in the fanbase trust Mo, and would prefer to hear from a new voice. That new voice will be Bloom, and because he has a history of building strong farm systems, it would make sense to see what you can get from the Red Sox.
They definitely won’t trade Roman Anthony or Marcelo Mayer, but there are plenty of interesting prospects in there, especially on the pitching side. Richard Fitts, Wikelman Gonzalez, Luis Guerrero and Zach Penrod are either MLB ready or close to being at that point.
This could end up being a key part of Bloom’s tasks to overhaul the Cardinals system in 2025.
