Cardinals Trade Rumors 07/26/2023: Jordan Hicks, Tyler O’Neill, Brendan Donovan

Will the Cardinals Move Hicks and O’Neill? Could Donovan be on the Market?

Over the next week, I’ll be consolidating trade rumors into one big daily post. I’m also keeping track of who’s linked to which teams.

What We Know
The Cardinals are selling and the only off-limit players are Paul Goldschmidt, Nolan Arenado, Jordan Walker, and Lars Nootbaar. Almost anyone else is fair game (including Willson Contreras, whose name has been put out there by the team).

Yesterday’s Rumors
The Cardinals are talking with Jordan Hicks about an extension; he’s a free agent at the end of the season and one of the guys most-likely to be traded. Hicks has had his issues, but the Cardinals also messed him up by throwing him in the rotation last season without building him up as a starter. If they don’t work out a deal, Hicks could still be on his way out.

Another player that appears to be staying is Tyler O’Neill; the Cardinals are leaning towards keeping the outfielder. I get his trade value is down due to his injuries, but the outfield logjam won’t clear itself. Playing O’Neill means Dylan Carlson will probably stay on the bench since Nootbaar is considered “off limits” and Walker is going to play everyday. I’m assuming the Cardinals believe that they could move O’Neill after the season if he rebounds.

Right now, the 3 top guys the Cardinals will probably move are Jordan Montgomery, Jack Flaherty, and Paul DeJong. Chris Stratton might be on his way out too.

There are still rumors swirling around Arenado and the Dodgers. While the fit is there, we’ve already heard the Cardinals have Arenado off the table; he also has a full no-trade clause (along with Goldschmidt and Contreras).

Need another reason to clear out shortstop?

More fan projecting then actual trade rumor, but could the Dodgers be interested in Brendan Donovan? Donovan has also been loosely tied to the Yankees, and moving him would make a little bit of sense; the Cardinals won’t get a whole lot for rentals like Monty or Flaherty, nor will they for someone like DeJong or a reliever. To get something good, they’ll have to give something good. I’d probably rather trade Tommy Edman over Donovan, who has more team control remaining.

Here’s a list of guys and who they are tied to:

• Arenado: Dodgers
• Carlson: Yankees
• Flaherty: Giants, Rays, Yankees
• Goldschmidt: Phillies
• Hicks: Dodgers, Giants
• Montgomery: Giants, Rays, Orioles
• Stratton: Giants
• Drew VerHagen: Giants

While we wait for deals to go down, check out the Cardinals Draft Tracker and their 2024 Spring Training and Regular Season schedules.