Cardinals Blockbuster Decisions Expected To Shape Trade Deadline

There are going to be a lot of eyes on the St. Louis Cardinals over the next few weeks.

St. Louis won't return to the field until Friday, July 18th. The Cardinals will kick off a series against the Arizona Diamondbacks riding a 51-46 record with plenty of questions ahead of the trade deadline, but also optimism. The Cardinals have been one of the biggest feel-good stories of the season, but limped into the All-Star break.

How the Cardinals respond over the next few weeks will determine how the team handles the trade deadline. The Athletic's Katie Woo talked about the Cardinals' trade deadline plans and shared how there will be a lot of eyes on the team and an executive even shared that St. Louis can be a "linchpin" for a lot of teams this summer.

"If the Cardinals can come out of the break with better health, they’ll feel much more confident about their chances to be buyers. If not, they could be a major factor in the trade market. St. Louis has several impact relievers on expiring deals (Ryan Helsley, Phil Maton and Steven Matz) and is believed to be shopping starting pitcher Erick Fedde as well...

"The Cardinals can be a linchpin for a lot of teams," one major-league executive recently said. “They have a lot of players teams are interested in."

St. Louis has the talent to compete, but there are pieces heading to free agency, like Ryan Helsley, worth following closely.