The eventual sell-off began following the St. Louis Cardinals’ failure to make the postseason in 2024. It began with the decline of Lance Lynn, Keynan Middleton, and Kyle Gibson’s options. John Mozeliak had a contract in place to send Nolan Arenado to the Astros, but Arenado declined, citing his no-trade clause. Since then, Paul Goldschmidt has left for the Yankees, and Mozeliak has expressed interest in trading Erick Fedde and Steven Matz.
However, as of now, Mozeliak’s primary priority appears to be to move Arenado. Moleziak has turned down an Arenado trade with the Yankees, despite receiving interest from other organizations. But even as The Lou downsizes, they look to holding onto one prized player with only one year left on his contract.
The Cardinals are rumored to be keeping closer Ryan Helsley
According to John Gambadoro, Ryan Helsley will stay a Cardinal. Gambo posted this about a potential D-Backs trade:
Helsley is one of the top relievers in the league and on the trade market, that is up until today. Last season, the fearsome closer recorded an MLB best 49 saves, finishing 2024 with a 2.04 ERA.
The Cardinals, who finished 83-79 and tied the Cubs for second place in the NL Central, will be without Arenado, Goldschmidt, Lynn, and Fedde, all of whom played significant roles in the 2024 Cardinals’ team, if everything goes as planned. Keeping Helsley for the entire walk year would make no sense right now, and the Cards do not appear to be prepared to compete next season.
Even with only a year left, Helsley could command a good price as a top reliever. If the Cards do not want to compete next season, which appears to be the case as they “reset,” they will have to part with Helsley. But this could just be a waiting game. If the Cardinals are contenders at the trade deadline (unlikely), Helsley will remain with the team. If they aren’t, the Cards may have an advantage in the reliever market among contending teams willing to pay a premium for a top-tier closer. But for now, it seems Helsley won’t be moved this offseason.
