Cardinals Trade Jordan Montgomery, Jordan Hicks to Texas Rangers, Toronto Blue Jays

St. Louis started its fire sale by trading its ace and closer to dueling American League contenders with the deadline approaching.

The St. Louis Cardinals traded away two of their top pitchers Sunday, officially kickstarting a fire sale amidst their worst season in nearly 30 years.

The Cardinals' front office opened things up by dealing closer Jordan Hicks to the Toronto Blue Jays. Less than an hour later, news broke that they had also sent starting pitcher Jordan Montgomery to the Texas Rangers.

According to ESPN's Jeff Passan, the Cardinals got right-handed pitchers Sem Robberse and Adam Kloffenstein back from the Blue Jays in the Hicks deal. The teams later confirmed the swap on social media and their transaction log.

Passan also reported that the Rangers parted ways with infielder Thomas Saggese, right-hander Tekoah Roby and left-hander John King in order to bring in Montgomery. St. Louis also sent veteran reliever Chris Stratton back to Texas as part of the trade.

Hicks, Montgomery and Stratton were all set to become free agents in November.

Although the Cardinals were initially considered a contender in the National League – coming off of four consecutive playoff appearances – their season went south fast. St. Louis is currently sitting in last place in the NL Central, and their 47-60 record has them on pace for their worst regular season since 1995.

So the Cardinals became sellers, trading some valuable arms on expiring deals to American League teams looking to make serious playoff pushes.

Hicks had the lowest ERA in the Cardinals' active bullpen at 3.67, and he is striking out a team-best 12.7 batters per nine innings. Even though he's only 26 years old, Hicks had been one of the most reliable relievers in St. Louis dating back to 2018.

Toronto is in third place in the AL East at 59-47. Even though the Blue Jays' bullpen already ranked No. 4 in baseball with a 3.65 ERA this season, they may need all the help they can get as they try to hold onto the third AL Wild Card spot.

Montgomery, meanwhile, led all Cardinals starters with a 3.42 ERA and 1.248 WHIP this season. St. Louis acquired the 30-year-old southpaw from the New York Yankees at the 2022 trade deadline.

Joining Montgomery in Texas is Chris Stratton, who also spent time as the Cardinals' closer this season. The 32-year-old righty is sitting on a 4.36 ERA and 1.174 WHIP as July winds down.

The Rangers have now added another starter and an experienced reliever to a roster that had already put together a 60-45 season thus far. Holding onto a mere 1.0-game lead for first place in the AL West, though, Texas swung a deal with the Mets for former Cy Young winner Max Scherzer on Saturday, then snagged Montgomery and Stratton from the Cardinals on Sunday.

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