Was Jordan Montgomery the Best Acquisition of the 2022 Trade Deadline?

Through four starts, St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Jordan Montgomery has given up just one run through 25 2/3 innings and helped the Cardinals' secure a five-game lead over the Milwaukee Brewers in the National League Central race. The Cardinals have won 16 of their last 18.

Jordan Montgomery tossed a 99-pitch, one-hit, shutout, complete game at Wrigley Field in the St. Louis Cardinals’ 1-0 victory over the Chicago Cubs Monday night.

Montgomery has been a revelation for the Cardinals’ pitching staff.

On July 30, the Cardinals were 53-48, four games out of first place in the National League Central, and in dire need of pitching help.

Free agent acquisition Steven Matz had just headed back to the Injured List, after suffering a torn MCL in his left knee, in his first start back after missing the previous two months. Ace Jack Flaherty has made just three starts in 2022, and may not pitch again this season. Miles Mikolas (3.32 ERA) and Adam Wainwright (3.11) have both been very good, but the Cardinals had little to nothing behind them, and needed a boost at the trade deadline.

Help arrived in the form of a pair of veteran starting pitchers. First, the Cardinals traded prospects Johan Oviedo and Malcom Nuñez for right-handed pitcher Jose Quintana, who is quietly putting together a very strong 2022 campaign (3.45 through 122.2 innings).

But it was the Cardinals last-second acquisition of Jordan Montgomery from the New York Yankees that may have been the best move any team made at this year's deadline.

The Cardinals flipped 28-year-old center fielder Harrison Bader to the Yankees for Montgomery, after the Yankees acquired Frankie Montas from the Oakland A’s. The move came as a shock to both fan bases. There had been no reports of Montgomery being unhappy with his situation in New York. Nor had there been any trade rumors floating around featuring Montgomery’s name in recent months.

The Yankees wanted to improve their outfield defense, which they did, through the acquisition of Bader, who has a league-wide reputation as a defensive wiz. Bader won a Gold Glove in 2021 with 13 Defensive Runs Saved, but has actually rated as a minus defender in 2022 (-2 DRS, 0 defensive Wins Above Replacement). Not only has Bader declined statistically as a fielder from 2021 to 2022, but his slash line is down from .267/.324/.785 to .256/.303/.673 through 72 games this year. Bader has been a member of the Yankees for three weeks, but has yet to appear in a game. Plantar fasciitis landed him a spot on the Injured List on June 26.

With the acquisition of Frankie Montas, the Yankees must have felt that they would no longer need Montgomery in the postseason. In October, they will likely deploy a four-man rotation featuring Montas, Gerrit Cole, Nestor Cortes and Luis Severino, pending Severino’s return from the IL. Still, there’s no guarantee that Severino will be recover fully in time, and should the Yankees trust Domingo German, Jameson Taillon or Jonathan Loaisiga in an elimination game four? None of them have given the Yankees much reason to.

You’d be hard-pressed to find a starting pitcher that has pitched better than Montgomery has since joining the Cardinals. Through four starts, the 29-year-old has logged a 0.35 ERA, .149 opponent BA and 0.64 WHIP, allowing just one run and 13 hits through 25.2 innings. Montgomery even blanked his former team, allowing the Yankees just two hits and one walk through five innings in his first start with the Cardinals.

The additions of Quintana and Montgomery have bolstered the Cardinals’ pitching rotation and transformed the club’s season. A quartet of Montgomery, Quintana, Adam Wainwright and Miles Mikolas is a strong postseason rotation, with no clear chink in its armor. Pair a formidable rotation with an extremely potent lineup led by National League MVP front-runner Paul Goldschmidt, and it’s no surprise that the Cardinals have taken off since the trade deadline.

At the start of August, St. Louis quickly ripped a seven-game win-streak, including a sweep of the Yankees. A week later, they began another win-streak, now standing at eight games and counting. The Redbirds have won 16 of their last 18, and now hold a five-game lead over the Milwaukee Brewers in the NL Central race.

The Yankees, on the other hand, have moved in the opposite direction since August 2. The Bronx Bombers are 5-14 since the deadline, still awaiting the debut of Bader. The Astros have surpassed them, and now have the best record in the American League.

Montas, the Yankees' prized trade pickup, has given up as many runs as innings he's pitched (14) to the tune of a 9.00 ERA through three starts with his new club. Opponents are hitting .310 off him.

Not only will the Cardinals have Montgomery for the upcoming pennant chase, but he’s also under club control for 2023 as well. He's making just $6 million this year.

The returns are early, but given the immediate results from both clubs, Bader-for-Montgomery is looking like the best (and worst) move of this year’s trade deadline, for my money.