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3 available Cardinals trade targets Yankees should pursue during St. Louis' spiral

By Adam Weinrib |
St. Louis Cardinals v San Francisco Giants
St. Louis Cardinals v San Francisco Giants / Thearon W. Henderson/GettyImages
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Remember when the Yankees opted not to fortify left field during the offseason, content to let Andrew Benintendi walk without a replacement? Yeah. About that.

Oswaldo Cabrera, God love him, is scuffling tremendously, subtracting WAR from the Yankees roster instead of adding it. He probably is not a starting left fielder in this league, though odds are he'll be valuable again someday in a utility role. Aaron Hicks? Don't be fooled by his extra-base hits in consecutive games; he's been worth -0.7 bWAR in only 59 at-bats. How is that possible?! It's possible, and it's happening.

Jake Bauers? Willie Calhoun? Franchy Cordero? All have had nice moments. None of whom should stand in the way of a midseason upgrade.

While San Francisco's Joc Pederson is the popular pick to get the Yankees postseason ready, the St. Louis Cardinals are having a fire ... sale, shockingly sitting in the NL Central's basement. They're also showing a sudden interest in shoving Willson Contreras into their already-crowded outfield in the years to come, meaning a quartet of outfielders will hit the market in the weeks to come, according to The Athletic's Jim Bowden.

Despite a recent hot spurt, we're still going to toss a hearty "no thank you" to Juan Yepez, the 25-year-old first baseman/outfielder who's still been worth negative bWAR to begin 2023. The Yankees should absolutely consider the other three available names, though, presented in ascending order of desire.

3 St. Louis Cardinals trade targets Yankees should pursue at 2023 trade deadline

Cardinals Trade Target: Alec Burleson

Left-handed swingin' Alec Burleson might not have the defensive chops of the other Cardinals on the chopping block, but he's raked at every level of the minors, and is still just 24.

Something between a left fielder and a first baseman (again, that gives us pause), Burleson tore up the International League last season, drilling 20 home runs in 109 games, batting .331 with a .904 OPS. This season, he's off to a slower start (aren't we all), hitting .218 with a .670 OPS with regular playing time for the floundering Cards.

The aptly-named Burleson doesn't look like a prototypical corner outfielder, but boasts a strong arm (78th percentile on Savant) that belies his limited range (12th-percentile OAA). He rarely whiffs (96th percentile), meaning his early struggles haven't resulted from poor contact rates.

Burleson remains an intriguing prospect (just 24 years old) and would help balance the Yankees' lineup, but doesn't fit their prototypical mold of an outfield acquisition.

Cardinals Trade Target: Dylan Carlson

Switch-hitter, center field chops, former top prospect pedigree scuffling a bit at the MLB level ... yeah, this feels like a Yankees acquisition to a tee. Move over, Aaron Hicks! Make room for ... a guy who is a lot like you were seven years ago, when the Twins jettisoned you to New York.

Dylan Carlson, also just 24, finished third in the Rookie of the Year race in 2021 with a 115 OPS+ and 18 bombs. He was reportedly off the table in Juan Soto trade talks last summer, but much like Soto himself, has struggled to find his footing ever since, posting a roughly average 99 OPS+ last year and a 76 mark this season.

Could the Yankees provide him a jolt and reignite the spirit behind that 76? Carlson's metrics are all still rock solid, and the speedy center fielder excels on the defensive end, ranking in the 92nd percentile in early-season OAA and 87th in arm strength. He rarely walks, but the rest of his offensive profile is trending up -- and, above all else, he's already shown the ability to translate his skills to the MLB level. He isn't starting from scratch.

Do the Yankees have enough pitching to offer the Cardinals to convince them to part with Carlson? Clarke Schmidt obviously cannot be a centerpiece here, so they'll have to hope the Cards believe in the big-league future of players like Will Warren and Matt Krook. They'll also probably have to add a juicy piece like Oswald Peraza to get this deal done.

It might be easier to obtain a Cardinals slugger who's already on the outs ...

Cardinals Trade Target: Tyler O'Neill

We've discussed the Tyler O'Neill fit extensively; the discourse may have peaked weeks ago when Cardinals manager Oli Marmol benched his outfielder for a perceived lack of hustle, setting off a firestorm of weirdness (long before the Willson Contreras weirdness).

O'Neill drilled 34 bombs with a 148 OPS+ under Mike Shildt in 2021, but has regressed under new leadership. The right-handed (dammit!) slugger is on the IL, at the moment, dealing with a back issue, but would be under control through 2024 if acquired.

O'Neill has the most extensive MLB record of any Cardinal, as well as the longest MLB rap sheet of dings and misdeeds. The Yankees do have a very recent history of freeing Cardinals from their decaying organization, and can surely rely on Harrison Bader to give an accurate scouting report of his ridiculously jacked ex-teammate (currently sporting a 72 OPS+).

Look. Joc Pederson is probably a better fit than any of these Cardinals, though nothing is more emblematic of the modern Yankees than attempting to retool by recapturing the glory that's currentlly being squandered by former top prospects. Maybe the Yankees prefer Carlson, but they're more likely to acquire a pre-arb or arbitration-eligible player than they are to add someone who's wrapping up a free agent contract. Keep your eyes firmly planted on the Cardinals these next few weeks, and hope O'Neill fights back from his balky back soon.

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