Jul 12, 2020; St. Louis, Missouri, United States; A view of empty seats as the St. Louis Cardinals play a simulated game at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

Cardinals Gold Glover Is MLB's Most Intriguing Trade Chip

Originally posted on St. Louis Cardinals on SI
By Patrick McAvoy | Last updated Jan 3, 2026 12:01 PM ET

It has been quite an odd offseason across Major League Baseball.

Things started off with a bang. The St. Louis Cardinals traded Sonny Gray to the Boston Red Sox before the winter meetings and other moves popped up around the league early on. Josh Naylor signed with the Seattle Mariners and Dylan Cease signed with the Toronto Blue Jays, among other moves.

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The winter meetings were a bit quieter than expected, although a few deals got done, including Kyle Schwarber, Pete Alonso, and Edwin Díaz. The Cardinals have been busy, too. They traded Willson Contreras to Boston and signed Dustin May. But still, there is a significant amount of talent still sitting there in free agency and on the trade block and it's already January. Things started strong but have completely stalled out.

The Cardinals are an intriguing team to follow

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So, where does that leave St. Louis? The Cardinals have one of the most talked-about trade chips in the league in Brendan Donovan, but nothing to publicly show for the rumors yet. Earlier in the week, The Athletic's Will Sammon and Katie Woo reported that with Contreras now gone, a Donovan deal will now become a priority again.

"No deal with any team appears to be close, but with the Contreras trade completed, St. Louis will shift back to making Donovan a priority. Expect trade talks to pick up over the next couple of weeks." Sammon and Woo wrote.

On top of this, they reported that it seemed like "traction" was building before the Contreras deal with the Seattle Mariners and San Francisco Giants. This isn't shocking. On Dec. 13, Woo reported that the Giants and Mariners were "front-runners." Outside of these two, the Red Sox have been linked to Donovan along with the Kansas City Royals. Early in the offseason, MLB.com's Mark Feinsand noted that the New York Yankees, Los Angeles Dodgers, and Cleveland Guardians also were believed to be interested in Donovan.

The market is alive and it has been reported that the Cardinals want at least two high-end prospects for him. Donovan is a guy who can play all over the field and do it well. The fact that he can play all over the place and there has been significant interest all across the league, continues to make him an intriguing guy to watch. It seems like with each passing day, more comes out about the market, but a deal hasn't happened yet.

Throughout the MLB offseason, it's easy to get caught up in the rumors and grand allure of the possibility of moves. It's important to note that the Cardinals are in a good position here. It's easy to get frustrated with how slow the market moves. But this should work in St. Louis' favor. Either a club is going to meet the Cardinals' massive asking price, or they will keep an All-Star utility man at least to kick off the 2026 season. A win-win. Wouldn't you rather that, than a hasty trade for a smaller return just to get something done?

The rumors are out there and a handful of teams are linked to the All-Star. That is a good thing and now we wait.

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

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