Cardinals Reportedly In Mix To Land Ace In Possible Blockbuster Trade

St. Louis surprisingly has been mentioned as a club pursuing a blockbuster trade

Could the St. Louis Cardinals add a fourth starting pitcher this offseason?

St. Louis already has added Sonny Gray, Lance Lynn, and Kyle Gibson, but some have wondered if another move could happen this offseason. The Cardinals' struggles last season mainly were due to a lack of success from the rotation so the club has taken a hard look at it this offseason.

The Cardinals have been linked to numerous hurlers, but there have been rumblings that the club is done adding starters. Although this is the case, St. Louis reportedly is in the mix to land Chicago White Sox ace Dylan Cease, according to The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal.

"The White Sox are weighing offers for Cease, and the (New York Yankees) and (Baltimore Orioles) are among those to express 'sincere' interest, according to major-league sources briefed on the discussions," Rosenthal said. "Other teams are serious, however. While the exact list of suitors is not known, the (Los Angeles Dodgers), (St. Louis Cardinals), and (Boston Red Sox) are among the teams possibly in the mix...

"The Dodgers, even after spending $1 billion this offseason on right-handers (Yoshinobu Yamamoto), Tyler Glasnow, and Shohei Ohtani, are not ruling out the addition of another starter with Ohtani out as a pitcher until 2025, sources said. Neither are the Cardinals, who already have signed free-agent righties Sonny Gray, Lance Lynn, and Kyle Gibson for a combined $98 million."

Cease had a down year in 2023 but still would be a major pickup. The 28-year-old has a career 3.83 ERA and logged a 2.20 ERA and 227-to-78 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 2022.

St. Louis already is much better on paper, but it wouldn't hurt to add another ace to the mix. Pairing Cease with Gray would give the Cardinals a very solid duo at the top of the rotation. Lynn and Gibson are inning-eaters and Miles Mikolas could be in line for a bounce-back season. 

The Cardinals' rotation already is improved, but landing Cease would be a game-changer.

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