The St. Louis Cardinals are eliminated and are watching the 2024 postseason from the couch.
The team finished 83-79 and fell short of October baseball for the second consecutive year. Now, it appears that a rebuild of sorts is on the horizon.
One way to kick off the rebuild would be to trade All-Star closer Ryan Helsley, who is entering the final year of his contract.
Tim Kelly of Bleacher Report predicted that the hard-throwing right-hander could be traded to the Philadelphia Phillies and noted that St. Louis could bring back a major haul that includes infielder Bryson Stott.
Stott would be an interesting fit for St. Louis. He can play multiple positions on the infield and could potentially even take over at second base, which would give St. Louis the chance to shift Brendan Donovan over to first base to replace Paul Goldschmidt.
Depending on what happens with Nolan Arenado, St. Louis could also play Stott at third base or even shift Donovan there while Stott takes over second.
The Cardinals should receive a major haul in exchange for Helsley if they capitalize on his value while they still can. The only issue with Stott is that he is a left-handed bat.
St. Louis already has plenty of lefty bats including Donovan, Alec Burleson, Nolan Gorman, Lars Nootbaar, and Michael Siani, so it might be better to search elsewhere for a right-handed hitter.
It will be interesting to see what St. Louis can bring back in exchange for Helsley and if the Phillies would consider parting ways with Stott to land the All-Star closer.
More MLB: Cardinals linked to Phillies slugger in potential blockbuster deal
