Cardinals Could Trade $81 Million All-Star Closer To Diamondbacks At Deadline

The St. Louis Cardinals came into Sunday's series finale with the Arizona Diamondbacks having won 15 of their last 19 games and with a record of 29-23.

However, that hasn't stopped speculation of potential trades for some of their valuable assets. One such player that could be traded is All-Star closer Ryan Helsley.

Helsley is 2-0 with a 3.50 ERA this season and has saved 10 games. He's in the final year of his contract, so it might make sense for St. Louis to do something similar to what the Milwaukee Brewers did with Josh Hader in 2022.

Josh Jacobs of Redbird Rants listed Arizona as a potential fit for the All-Star closer.

"If you look around baseball, there are already multiple teams in desperate need of bullpen upgrades, and that list will likely grow as the trade deadline approaches. The Diamondbacks, Phillies, Rangers, and Cubs are the most obvious examples right now, and at least three of those teams seem like they'd have interest in Helsley," Jacobs wrote on Sunday.

Arizona needs bullpen help and they also have plenty of young pitching prospects within their system. That is St. Louis' biggest need this year at the trade deadline, as they have had a ton of pitchers at the minor league level suffer injuries, and their only current depth option is Michael McGreevy.

The Cardinals likely won't keep Helsley beyond the 2025 season, so it makes sense for them to consider trading him, even if they are in postseason contention.