Cardinals starter 'likeliest' to be traded at deadline

The St. Louis Cardinals are in a strange period. While the team is in a postseason spot, the front office is trying to move their veterans at the trade deadline. While some players aren't expected to be moved, the Cardinals do have a player who was named the most likely to be traded at the MLB trade deadline. 

According to Katie Woo of The Athletic, the player the Cardinals are open to trading more than any other is veteran starter Erick Fedde.

"Fedde is the likeliest to be traded." Woo writes. "Much like last season with the Chicago White Sox, Fedde (who is in the final year of a two-year, $7.5 million deal) would garner considerable interest as a low-cost, mid-rotation starter."

The Cardinals have a strong rotation and have Michael McGreevy waiting in the wings. While they can't trade Miles Mikolas due to his no-trade clause, they would be able to ship off Fedde.

So far this season, Fedde has a 4.56 ERA and a 3-8 record through 17 starts. But he has a complete game shutout, and still has solid stuff. He's pitched 92.2 innings and has struggled with his command during this time.

Fedde has 57 strikeouts and 41 walks, the worst strikeout per nine innings of his career since returning to the big leagues. He also has his worst strikeout-to-walk ratio of his career since returning from Korea.

Even with his struggles, teams would still be looking to add a starter, and Fedde is a reasonable option to target. The Cardinals most likely wouldn't demand top dollar, and he is also a cheap rental option. There's always a market for such pitchers, even if the return isn't incredible.

Of all the starters the Cardinals could trade, Fedde is the one most likely to be traded. Even though he hasn't played as well as he did in 2024, Fedde would still fetch a decent return if traded.