Cardinals Need To Trade $2 Million Breakout Star Pitcher

The St. Louis Cardinals have been through quite a roller coaster ride over the last few months.

They came into the season looking like a rebuilding team that would aggressively sell at the trade deadline due to some decisions made in the offseason. But St. Louis won a lot of games early in the season and it made some wonder whether the Cardinals would buy or sell at the deadline.

But the month of June has been quite the disaster for manager Oliver Marmol's team. They've lost quite a bit and dropped down in the National League Wild Card standings. To make matters worse, the San Francisco Giants recently landed superstar Rafael Devers in a trade that separates the Cardinals even further away from contention in the NL.

With that in mind, the Cardinals need to sell at the trade deadline and there aren't many names more important to deal away than breakout star Phil Maton.

Maton was the Cardinals' only acquisition of the disappointing offseason a few months ago. No other team showed too much interest in the righty, so he was able to land with St. Louis on a $2 million deal.

This season, Maton has tossed 26 1/3 innings with a 2.05 ERA, 2.20 FIP, and 1.17 WHIP. He's been rather dominant for the Cardinals as he sits on a one-year deal.

Trading him now makes a lot of sense. Maton is headed for free agency at the end of the season and his trade value is never going to be higher than it is right now. The Cardinals might not land a star prospect, but they could bring in a solid return for the veteran righty.