St. Louis Cardinals trade Rob Kaminsky to Cleveland Indians for Brandon Moss

While most of us were sleeping, Chris Cotillo, of MLB Daily Dish, tweeted out that the St. Louis Cardinals and the Cleveland Indians were discussing a trade deadline deal, with left-handed-hitting first baseman/outfielder Brandon Moss being the main trade target discussed. After losing Matt Holliday to a quad (re)injury last night (severity not yet known), the Cardinals unfortunately went from a position of "want" to a perceived position of "need."

What I know so far: CLE & STL talking trades, likely close. Moss has been discussed, Kaminsky a possibility. http://t.co/oLOMyJjlLf

— Chris Cotillo (@ChrisCotillo) July 30, 2015

With a middling offense and Holliday likely out for an extended period of time, John Mozeliak and the Cardinals lost what little leverage they had going into the trade deadline. This notion was supported when I read that Rob Kaminsky—yes, one of the Cardinals’ top pitching prospects—was was being discussed as possibly being part of the deal.

First, I must admit that I am quite biased as a huge fan of Kaminsky. If you recall, I made a one-day trip to South Bend, Indiana, last year for the sole purpose of watching a Kaminsky start in person. Despite having nowhere near his best stuff that day, Kaminsky was one or two pitches away from getting through the outing unscathed. However, I don't believe I am too far off on Kaminsky as he is consistently climbing up prospect lists as he is putting together another good minor league season, this time at High-A Palm Beach.

As you can see in the table above, Moss has actually been the less hitter than Reynolds thus far this season. If wRC+ isn't your thing, then take an individual look at walk rate, strikeout rate, and on-base percentage. While Reynolds strikes out more than Moss, it's not by much, and due to his walking more frequently, Reynolds's OBP is 21 points higher than Moss's.

Either way, since I began writing this article, the trade has been confirmed, and the Cardinals have indeed sent top pitching prospect Rob Kaminsky to the Indians for Brandon Moss. Despite Moss being under team control through next season, I am not too pleased about this:

Can report/confirm Cards have traded LHP prospect Rob Kaminsky to CLE for IB/OF Brandon Moss. @SBNation was 1st to report deal in works.

— Bernie Miklasz (@miklasz) July 30, 2015

With Holliday's injury last night, we all knew a trade was going to happen. I wish nothing but the best to Kaminsky as he begins his ascent through the Indians' farm system. Also, welcome, Brandon Moss.