The St. Louis Cardinals are finally set to enter the rebuild they were anticipated to enter a few seasons ago. St. Louis could look to trade a lot of different veterans on its roster, including Ryan Helsley, Nolan Arenado, and Sonny Gray. Jim Bowden of The Athletic expects St. Louis to enter this rebuild in a big way. Bowden predicts the Cardinals will trade Helsley, their star closer, to the Philadelphia Phillies in a blockbuster move this winter.

Helsley is projected to land a six year, $82 million deal when he hits free agency after the 2025 season, per Spotrac. “The Cardinals are focused on rebuilding and the Phillies need a hard-throwing, impact reliever. The Phillies lost two key high-leverage relievers to free agency – Jeff Hoffman and Carlos Estévez – and have made it a priority to address that area this offseason,” Bowden wrote.

“Helsley won the Trevor Hoffman Award winner this year as the best closer/reliever in the National League, logging a 2.04 ERA with 49 saves and 79 strikeouts in 66 1/3 innings.”

Bowden continued on to discuss how a trade could come to fruition. He pitched an idea where the Cardinals package Helsley and Arenado together to bring in Phillies third baseman Alec Bohm and additional prospects. This deal would give the Phillies the reliever and Bohm replacement they’re looking for.

It would give the Cardinals a young All-Star at third base while also getting off Arenado’s massive contract. Nothing of this kind has been rumored to be discussed, but it’s certainly the framework of a deal that could make a lot of sense. I certainly wouldn’t be surprised to see these two sides come together in some sort of trade this offseason given each team’s needs.

Cardinals Sign Ryan Vilade To Minor League Deal

The Cardinals have announced that they have signed infielder/outfielder Ryan Vilade to a minor league contract. Vilade, represented by Icon Sports Management, will also receive a non-roster invite to major league spring training.

Vilade, who turns 26 in February, has some limited major league experience, having played in three games for the Rockies in 2021 and 17 games for the Tigers in 2024. His major league batting line is .157/.200/.216 over 56 plate appearances. After being outrighted by Detroit at the end of the season, he elected free agency.

While those numbers may not be impressive, the Cardinals are likely focusing more on his minor league performance. In 2024, he appeared in 108 Triple-A games, posting a line of .278/.346/.449 with a 105 wRC+ in 442 plate appearances. Additionally, he stole 20 bases and played defensively at all three outfield positions and three infield positions, excluding shortstop.

Vilade was a second-round pick of the Rockies in 2017 and ranked among Colorado’s top ten prospects from 2018 to 2022 by Baseball America. However, his performance dipped at the Triple-A level in 2021 and 2022, leading to the Rockies placing him on waivers. The Pirates claimed him, but he had another disappointing season in Triple-A in 2023.

After electing free agency going into 2024, he signed a minor league deal with the Tigers. Despite a lackluster tenure in the majors, he showed enough potential at Triple-A to catch the Cardinals’ interest.

Looking toward 2025, St. Louis is preparing for a reset year, aiming to enhance their player development pipeline rather than focus solely on short-term competition. This could lead to trades of players with limited long-term value, with Nolan Arenado potentially on the move as he turns 34 and desires to play for a contender. Other plausible candidates for trade include Brendan Donovan and Lars Nootbaar, who have three years of club control left, as well as Nolan Gorman, who despite having four years of control left, may be a candidate for a change of scenery.

Vilade’s versatility means he could fill some of the playing time as the team adjusts its roster. If he secures a roster spot, he still has one option year remaining and only a few days of service time, which means he could be retained affordably in the future.