Cardinals Are 'Focused' On Adding Pitching; Former All-Star Is Prime Option

St. Louis looks like a club that will add around the trade deadline

May 28, 2024; New York City, New York, USA; New York Mets starting pitcher Jose Quintana (62) delivers a pitch during the first inning against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports / Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports

The St. Louis Cardinals are starting to change some people's minds.

St. Louis struggled to begin the 2024 season and many wrote it off quickly. There has been plenty of speculation about who the Cardinals could trade in a sell-off around the deadline but they are starting to look like a team that could add instead.

If the Cardinals can keep up their recent winning ways, they likely will look to add starting pitching help, according to The Athletic's Jim Bowden.

"Just like in the offseason, the Cardinals are focused on trying to acquire another veteran starting pitcher," Bowden said. "They consider themselves 'buyers' at this point, which I am not buying; in fact, I think they'll be sellers at the trade deadline."

Although Bowden doesn't sound confident that the Cardinals will buy, if they can continue to find ways to win games that likely will be the case. St. Louis currently has one of the National League Wild Card spots and should get even better.

It wouldn't be too shocking to see the Cardinals add and one player who could make sense is current New York Mets pitcher José Quintana. Bowden suggested he could be traded and he already has experience on the Cardinals after making 12 starts with the club in 2022 and logged a 2.01 ERA.

His overall numbers don't jump off the page, but Quintana has allowed three runs or fewer in nine of his 12 starts so far with New York. The Mets are looking like sellers and Quintana will be a free-agent at the end of the season so a trade is likely.

St. Louis could use some more pitching and already has had success acquiring the one-time All-Star once. Why not do so again?

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