Dodgers Blockbuster Trade Pitch Adds Prized Cardinals All-Star To Bolster Bullpen

St. Louis will likely trade the fireballer this winter

Apr 28, 2024; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; A hat and glove of an Los Angeles Dodgers player durng a game against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images / John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images

The St. Louis Cardinals will actively seek ways to reduce payroll this winter while ensuring there's enough talent left on the big-league roster to keep fans coming to games in 2025.

With two of St. Louis' most valuable trade chips off the market, Willson Contreras and Sonny Gray, there aren't many solid options for the Cardinals.

However, a highly acclaimed Cardinals reliever is bound to be traded this offseason and he could potentially end up with the defending World Series champions next year.

"As for the (Los Angeles) Dodgers, is there any doubt they will spend?," Bleacher Report's Tim Kelly wrote Friday. "They are reportedly going to meet with (Juan) Soto. That feels like a longshot, but they need reliable starting pitching and (Corbin) Burnes could very well help the Dodgers as they try to repeat as World Series Champions. They'll either need to re-sign Teoscar Hernández or find someone else to fill that void in the outfield. And if (Devin) Williams and/or (Ryan) Helsley get traded, the Dodgers make sense as a landing spot for one of the star closers."

Helsley is entering his final year of arbitration after recording the best season of his career in 2024 with the Cardinals, during which he set the St. Louis single-season saves record with 49 punchouts and was named National League Reliever of the Year.

The 30-year-old flamethrower's performance significantly improved when his workload was reduced before the 2024 season began. Helsley was required to pitch only one inning or three outs per game, resulting in the two-time All-Star finishing as the league's saves leader.

The Dodgers used Michael Kopech as their closer after acquiring him from the Chicago White Sox at the trade deadline but being in that role is new to him -- this season was his first pitching out of the bullpen.

Perhaps Los Angeles would prefer to have a more established closer than Kopech. If so, they should be able to dip into their top-five farm system and complete a trade with the Cardinals for Helsley.

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