Feb 26, 2021; Jupiter, Florida, USA; A general view of the St. Louis Cardinals logo on the stadium at Roger Dean Stadium during spring training workouts. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-Imagn Images Jasen Vinlove-Imagn Images

Analyst Proposes Bold Trade To Fast-Track Cardinals Rebuild

Originally posted on St. Louis Cardinals on SI
By Patrick McAvoy | Last updated Aug 6, 2025 2:00 PM ET

The 2025 Major League Baseball trade deadline was just the beginning for the changes coming over to the St. Louis Cardinals.

Once the season comes to an end, Chaim Bloom is taking the mantle from John Mozeliak as the team's president of baseball operations. This is a significant change, and one fans have known about for a while now. The Cardinals made they uncommon decision to announce the transition before the 2025 season even began.

While this was surprising, it's also the beginning of a new era. Bloom has had success throughout his career so far as an executive. He was run out of Boston, but had his fingerprints all over the club's farm system. Now, those prospects have made the jump to the big leagues and Boston is a contender. He also had success with the Tampa Bay Rays.

His job is going to be turning this organization around now. The Cardinals made a few trades ahead of the deadline, but there's more coming.

Cardinals just scratched the surface for difficult decisions ahead of the trade deadline

Winslow Townson-Imagn Images

So, with just a few months to go until the the season ends. Who could be next on the way out of town?

FanSided's Christopher Kline made the bold suggestion that Matthew Liberatore should be considered as a trade piece.

"Cardinals will move on from LHP Matthew Liberatore," Kline said. "This probably won't happen immediately, but of St. Louis' young pitching staples, Matthew Liberatore feels like a more logical trade candidate. The talented southpaw is further ahead on the curve than McGreevy at a similar age. Liberatore and McGreevy also share notable parallels, as both are low-walk, low-strikeout arms with vast pitch arsenals and a tendency to sprinkle the outside of the zone with off-speed material.

"Liberatore has been one of the few semi-dependable options in the Cardinals rotation this season, leading all starters with a 3.96 ERA and 1.28 WHIP across 109.0 innings. He's under contract through 2029 and could very well factor into the Cardinals' long-term plans as a result. That said, while Liberatore can get batters chipping at pitches outside the zone, he tends to allow more hard contact than McGreevy."

This isn't necessary. The Cardinals could use a full rebuild, but Liberatore is just 25 years old and has shown he can be a top-half starter in a rotation. Why trade someone lke that when you already know you can have someone to build around?

This article first appeared on St. Louis Cardinals on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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