Three Under-The-Radar Pitchers The Cardinals Could Target

The trade deadline is approaching fast. And while the Cardinals aren’t going anywhere this year, it’s still worth considering doing some buying as it pertains to 2024. As things stand right now, the only starting pitchers the Cardinals have under contract for next season are Miles Mikolas and Steven Matz.

We’ve seen the Cardinals linked to Logan Gilbert, Lance Lynn, and Yankees prospect Clayton Beeter. However, there are definitely other options that could benefit the Cardinals. In this story, we’ll take a look at three under-the-radar trade candidates that the team could look at with the deadline approaching.

Michael Kopech

Kopech’s stats don’t look great this season. He’s 3-8 with a 4.47 ERA in his 17 starts. He has also walked 53 batters, which is just four shy of his total from last season.

However, he has recorded 97 strikeouts and possesses some of that swing and miss stuff the Cardinals have been desperate for. I would guess that if Kopech is acquired, he would be a supplemental piece, and I can really only see this happening if the Cardinals bring in Logan Gilbert. But I don’t think the Cardinals should waste their time targeting Lance Lynn, who’s 36 and has a 6.03 ERA.

Kopech is at least young and has plenty of upside. I could see the Cardinals potentially parting ways with someone like Juan Yepez, Tyler O’Neill, or Alec Burleson to get this deal done.

Bryce Miller

The Cardinals have been linked to the Mariners young starters for quite some time. While Gilbert is the only one that they have reportedly shown any interest in, he may be a bit expensive for the Cardinals liking. That’s no excuse for them to not get it done, but somebody like Bryce Miller could be of interest to them.

Miller is 5-3 with a 3.97 ERA this season and is currently on the injured list. But he has been a solid rotation piece for the Mariners when active. I would imagine it’d take one of the Cardinals top young bats to get this done. Perhaps Nolan Gorman or Brendan Donovan could be of interest to the Mariners.

I could see Dylan Carlson being dangled as trade bait as well.

Bryan Woo

Woo would also generate a pretty big haul if the Cardinals go this route. He’s one of Seattle’s top young arms and has pitched quite well this season, going 1-1 with a 3.63 ERA in his seven starts.

Once again, the strikeout stuff he possesses should be of interest to the Cardinals. I was reading a post on Redbird Rants from Josh Jacobs that suggested Nolan Gorman could be a piece going back to Seattle in a deal such as this.

I happen to agree with this, but I think it may take a little bit more than just one bat and could be similar to the potential package I mentioned when discussing Miller.

One thing is for sure, there is no excuse for the Cardinals to not upgrade their rotation significantly at this deadline.