Cardinals Veteran Surprisingly Mentioned As Trade Option For AL Central Club

St. Louis will have some tough decisions to make throughout the 2024 campaign

Apr 13, 2024; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Kyle Gibson (44) throws / Rick Scuteri-USA TODAY Sports

The St. Louis Cardinals haven't gotten off to the start they hoped for this season.

St. Louis drastically added to its starting rotation and bullpen this past offseason as a way to improve on a dreadful 2023 campaign. The Cardinals had one of their worst seasons in recent memory last season and never seemed to be at full strength.

The Cardinals haven't played as they hoped so far, but they still are loaded with talent and should be able to find success, especially with some important players on their way back from injuries. While this is the case, if the Cardinals aren't able to turn things around, it wouldn't be too shocking to see them be sellers again.

Bleacher Report's Zachary Rymer compiled a list of Major League Baseball team's biggest needs ahead of the trade deadline and possible options. He mentioned how the Minnesota Twins need pitching and surprisingly mentioned Cardinals hurler Kyle Gibson as an option.

"Rather, it's the back end of the rotation that should have the Twins worried," Rymer said. "Whereas Pablo López and Joe Ryan have been fine in the top two spots, the other three starters Minnesota has used have run up an 8.25 ERA. It's a downstream effect of losing Sonny Gray to free agency, and it'll have to be addressed eventually.

"Potential Solutions: Alex Wood, Ross Stripling, Paul Blackburn, (and) Kyle Gibson. Wood, Stripling, and especially Gibson, who pitched for the Twins for the first seven years of his career, are the most familiar names here. But the most interesting is Blackburn."

Although the Cardinals could end up being sellers if they struggle, it would be surprising to see the Cardinals trade away pitching. St. Louis' biggest weakness has been the rotation and it made a specific effort to add veterans to help out.

A move shouldn't be ruled out, but the only way the Cardinals are going to be depleting their rotation further is if they are completely out of contention around the deadline.

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