At long last, the St. Louis Cardinals appear to have picked a lane. They are falling out of contention in the National League Central and Wild Card races and appear to have chosen to sell.
On Sunday, they sent right-hander Erick Fedde to the Atlanta Braves. But they likely are not done just yet.
They will likely trade relievers Ryan Helsley, Phil Maton and Steven Matz, all of whom are on expiring contracts. But those may not be the only players that they trade.
Katie Woo recently reported that they were fielding calls on Sonny Gray. Josh Jacobs of FanSided suspects that the veteran right-hander might now be open to a trade after previously using his no-trade clause to stay put.
"Mozeliak stated to media back in Colorado that he planned on asking players with no-trade clauses if they had interest in moving at the deadline, so I doubt they'd be listening to offers right now and reaching out to potential suitors if Gray did not want to, or at least wasn't open to, being dealt away from St. Louis," Jacobs wrote.
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Gray is 10-4 with a 4.33 ERA in 21 starts this season. He was signed to a three-year, $75 million contract prior to the 2024 season.
When St. Louis announced a "reset" prior to 2025, Gray used his no-trade clause to stay in St. Louis. But with the Cardinals selling, Gray might be open to waiving his no-trade clause to go to a contender.
He has one more guaranteed year left on his contract, plus a club option for 2027. Trading Gray would allow St. Louis to clear some salary space, and depending on how much of his contract they eat, they could bring back a solid return.
It will certainly be interesting to see where things stand after Thursday's deadline. Gray's days in St. Louis could potentially be numbered.
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