Cardinals land 1 last trade before 2026 deadline

The trade deadline has come and gone after numerous moves were made to change the landscape of MLB this season. However, minutes after the deadline passed, reports indicated that the St. Louis Cardinals made a buzzer-beater deal with the Cincinnati Reds.

The organization is adding reliever depth to the bullpen, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan. St. Louis adds Caleb Ferguson from Cincinnati, who receives $250,000 in international bonus space.

“The St. Louis Cardinals acquired left-handed reliever Caleb Ferguson in a trade with the Cincinnati Reds for $250,000 in international bonus space, sources tell ESPN,” Passan reported.

Ferguson, who is 30 years old, joins the Cardinals after having a bit of a roller coaster of a campaign with the Reds. Through 24.2 innings pitched so far this year, Ferguson owns a 4.01 ERA and 1.500 WHIP while totaling 22 strikeouts.

This will be his seventh team in his entire eight-year career in MLB, and his sixth team in just three years. Ferguson has moved around the league since playing the first five years of his career with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

St. Louis acquired Ferguson shortly after the Cardinals traded JoJo Romero to the Milwaukee Brewers. The front office is seemingly switching things up in the bullpen for the final stretch of the regular season.

Despite being just on the outside of the Wild Card race, the Cardinals are still knocking on the door for a potential Wild Card spot. To do so, the team will have to turn things around rather quickly after going 3-7 in their last 10 games.