Cardinals to trade Ryan Helsley to Mets ahead of trade deadline

With a little under 24 hours to go until the MLB trade deadline, the St. Louis Cardinals are finalizing their first move of the deadline. According to Jon Heyman of The New York Post, the Cardinals are sending closer Ryan Helsley to the New York Mets.

Breaking; Mets closing in on trade for Ryan Helsley

St. Louis has been fielding calls on four of their relievers, and Helsley, their top arm, is set to be the first to go. He's a rental option and will hit free agency at the end of the year.

The Cardinals' closer has been in a lot of trade rumors over the past week, and the Mets are the team to make the final push for the 31-year-old veteran right-hander.

Helsley is in his seventh season in the major leagues and is having a solid year. He has a 3.00 ERA through 36 appearances this season. He's also notched 21 saves and has 41 strikeouts on the year.

MORE: Ryan Helsley open to re-signing with Cardinals in free agency amid trade rumors

The Cardinals veteran has known a trade has been coming for some time, and yet, he still wishes to return to the Cardinals in the offseason as a free agent. But, for now, he's headed to New York to help the Mets contend in a tight NL East.

The return for St. Louis in the Helsley trade, according to Heyman, is Mets prospects Jesus Baez, Nate Dohm, and Frank Elissalt. Baez is the Mets' eighth-ranked prospect according to MLB's Prospect Rankings, and is a 20-year-old shortstop/third baseman prospect.

Mets get Helsley for Baez, Dohm, Elissalt. Done deal.

While the right-handed pitcher Elissalt is unranked, Dohm is a right-handed pitcher who's 22 years old and is the Mets 14th 14th-ranked prospect. The Cardinals' closer is a rental, so St. Louis doesn't get any of the top-five prospects, but they each have their appeal.

This is the first move of the Cardinals' sale at the trade deadline. With more moves potentially on the way, St. Louis has begun to trade their trade chips, starting with one of their best in Helsley heading to the Mets a little under 24 hours before the deadline hits.

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