Cardinals News: Marcell Ozuna trade, Stephen Piscotty trade, offer for Manny Machado

A lot has been done. Still a lot going on

By Craig Edwards@vivaelbirdos Dec 14, 2017, 7:56am EST

Biggest news is that the Cardinals traded for Marcell Ozuna.

Here are the details of that trade including the four prospects the Cardinals are giving up.
Want to know what the Cardinals payroll looks like after trading for Ozuna and moving Stephen Piscotty to Oakland. We have the full breakdown here, including future seasons.
You are probably aware that Ozuna brings a big bat to St. Louis. He’s not just a home run hitter, though, and he plays decent defense.

Stephen Piscotty

The Cardinals appear to have been operating on West Coast time in discussing a trade with the Oakland A’s, as news broke that Stephen Piscotty would go to Oakland in exchange for two minor leaguers.
Susan Slusser did report that the deal was not actually quite done, but the two sides are close.

Derrick Goold has reported that the Cardinals “have met with Baltimore to determine if they could meet the asking price for Manny Machado.”
There are other reports indicating the Cardinals have made an offer.
They are looking for pitching close to the majors.
One thing to keep in mind, Machado is a free agent at the end of the 2018 season. Do not think even for a second that the Cardinals will have a negotiating window for an extension or that they will be able to prevent him from going to free agency. Any trade would be for one year of Machado. He’s only 25 years old and he’s going to sign a massive contract.

AE Schafer looks at the Cardinals stacks of prospects and cash and debates the merits of using one or the other, or both, to make the Cardinals better.
Ben Godar has a decades-old Cardinals recipe book, and he’s not afraid to use it.
Shohei Ohtani has a sprained UCL. That, and other MLB and Cardinals-related links.

We’ve got a lot more coming, today.