The St. Louis Cardinals entered the MLB offseason with plans to trim their payroll, but the trade market didn’t cooperate—until now. A potential lifeline may have emerged with the New York Yankees, who are reeling from Monday night’s gut-punch news: ace Gerrit Cole will miss the entire season due to Tommy John surgery.
That blow has turned the Yankees’ pitching staff from a strength into a question mark, and the Cardinals might have just the piece to help.
New York’s rotation woes don’t end with Cole.
“The Yankees hope to get 2024 Rookie of the Year Luis Gil back in a few months, but between him and Cole, their rotation has gone from the best in the league to somewhere between suspect and solid,” wrote Jon Heyman of the New York Post on Monday night.
With gaps to fill and urgency mounting, the Yankees are on the hunt for solutions, and St. Louis could be a willing partner.
Enter Erick Fedde, a 32-year-old right-hander who turned heads last season with a 9-9 record, a 3.30 ERA, and a 154-to-52 strikeout-to-walk ratio over 177 1/3 innings split between the Chicago White Sox and Cardinals.
His .233 batting average against and 1.16 WHIP underscored a career-best campaign that’s made him a hot commodity.
“Erick Fedde, with the Cardinals, and old friend Jordan Montgomery might even be worth a phone call,” Heyman suggested, pointing to Fedde as a practical target.
For the Yankees, Fedde’s appeal goes beyond his stats. At $7.5 million for the upcoming season, he’s a bargain for a veteran coming off a breakout year—a steal for a team that needs arms but isn’t eager to balloon its payroll further.
The Cardinals, meanwhile, are in rebuild mode and looking to shed salary while stockpiling young talent. Fedde, in the final year of his contract, fits the profile of a player they’d move for the right return—likely a top prospect or two from New York’s deep farm system.
The logic aligns for both sides. The Yankees can’t afford to ignore a pitcher like Fedde when their rotation is limping into the season, and the Cardinals have little reason to hold onto a veteran when their focus is on the future.
A trade could be the spark the St. Louis Cardinals failed to find this winter, while giving New York a fighting chance to stabilize its staff. With Cole sidelined and Gil’s return uncertain, the Bronx Bombers might soon be dialing up St. Louis to make this deal a reality.
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