The St. Louis Cardinals are one of MLB's biggest surprises thus far, entering Friday's action with a 25-18 record, good for third place in the best division in the league thus far, the NL Central. The Cardinals have played like a playoff team really since Opening Day, and while it's still pretty early, we've now reached almost two full months of the Cardinals playing extremely well.
This was supposed to be a retooling year for the Cardinals after trading veterans like Brendan Donovan, Willson Contreras, Sonny Gray and Nolan Arenado in the offseason, but thanks largely to young, ascending players like JJ Wetherholt, Jordan Walker and Alec Burleson, St. Louis is ahead of schedule. Chaim Bloom might opt to stand pat at the deadline and continue to retool, but he could also choose to go all-in and try to win with the team he has built. Adding a frontline starter like Joe Ryan could be what gets St. Louis to the postseason.
Why the Cardinals make sense as an under-the-radar Joe Ryan landing spot
Minnesota Twins starting pitcher Joe Ryan | Peter Aiken-Imagn Images
FanSided's Chris Landers named the Cardinals as a dark horse destination for Ryan, and it makes a lot of sense. The Cardinals are winning games thanks mostly to their offense. St. Louis ranks within the top 10 in the majors in runs scored, but who from their rotation do you trust beyond maybe Michael McGreevy?
Ryan's pitching style fits Busch Stadium, and the fact that he'd come with an extra year of club control makes him an even clearer fit. The Cardinals would get him for this season and next, while also earning the right to negotiate an extension with him. It's worth noting that the Cardinals do not have a single player under a guaranteed contract beyond 2027, so they have money to spend on the right player. A 29-year-old All-Star who can help fix a weakness fits that bill.
With all of that being said, a Ryan trade would not come cheap. Here's what a deal between the Cardinals and the Minnesota Twins could look like.
This Cardinals-Twins trade gives St. Louis the ace it desperately needs
This deal would see the Cardinals acquire perhaps the most valuable pitcher available at the deadline when considering the extra year of control, assuming the Detroit Tigers don't trade Tarik Skubal. To acquire such a valuable player, you're going to have to part with value, though, and this deal has St. Louis doing just that.
The centerpieces of the Twins' return are Jurrangelo Cijntje and Leo Bernal, two top-100 prospects per FanSided. I get the pain that'd come with trading a player of Ryan's caliber, but netting a pair of top-100 prospects – both of whom are close to making an impact in the majors, plus a sweetener in Ixan Henderson – is pretty strong value.
Cijntje might not be a switch-pitcher anymore, and the start to his Double-A season has been a bit clunky, but he was the centerpiece of the Brendan Donovan trade for a reason. Leo Bernal hasn't lit the world on fire with the bat in the upper minors but is a talented switch-hitter and an exceptional defensive catcher. Henderson is more of a lottery ticket in this deal, and he's out right now with a flexor strain, but he's coming off an outstanding 2025 season, which saw him post a 2.59 ERA in 25 Double-A starts. Once Henderson is healthy, it might not be too long before he's big-league ready.
The Cardinals get the pitcher they need, while the Twins get a good amount of value back for a guy they're unlikely to keep beyond 2027 anyway.
Would the Cardinals do this trade?
Minnesota Twins pitcher Joe Ryan | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images
It depends on how well they're playing closer to the deadline. You can say it's too early for the Cardinals to make such a major move right now, but what if they're sitting in a Wild Card spot at around the deadline? Why not make a move like this?
Again, Ryan is under control for next season too, so he wouldn't be a rental, and the Cardinals have the funds to extend him if they want to. Plus, while the package sounds substantial, it's not something the Cardinals couldn't rebound from. Cijntje is talented, but will he ever be as good as Ryan is now? Bernal is also an exciting prospect, but the Cardinals have Rainiel Rodriguez, an even better catching prospect, in their farm system.
If the Cardinals are in the playoff hunt and still need starting pitching, it makes a lot of sense to trade prospects who are easily replaceable in exchange for two playoff runs of an ace.
Would the Twins do this trade?
St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Jurrangelo Cijntje | Reinhold Matay-Imagn Images
I think the team that would need more convincing is the Twins because they've shown no interest in trading Ryan. The Twins held off from including Ryan in the deadline firesale last season and opted to keep him (and Pablo Lopez) through the offseason despite a plethora of rumors. With that being said, I'm not sure there is a better time for them to deal him than now.
Not only is this the last chance the Twins will have to sell him with more than one year of club control, but Ryan just survived a major injury scare. After watching Pablo Lopez's value get completely sapped after he needed Tommy John surgery, do the Twins want to risk potentially losing their last chance to trade Ryan?
The package makes sense, too. Cijntje can be part of their rotation of the future, Bernal is a fit behind the plate with Ryan Jeffers poised to enter free agency. Henderson could be part of the rotation equation as well. I'm not sure there's a better offer than one that'd land the Twins a pair of high-end prospects for Ryan, making the deal plausible.
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This article was originally published on www.fansided.com as This Cardinals-Twins trade for Joe Ryan would force Chaim Bloom's hand.
