Cardinals No. 2 Prospect Predicted To Make Jump To St. Louis

The St. Louis Cardinals have some red-hot prospects knocking on the big league door.

St. Louis' starting rotation is loaded with veterans right now but there is two guys down in the minors getting close to the majors. No. 10 prospect Michael McGreevy has gotten a few shots in the big leagues. No. 2 prospect Quinn Matthews is another guy who is getting close to the big leagues but hasn't gotten a chance yet.

So far this season, he has pitched to a 3.81 ERA in eight starts in the minors. The 24-year-old is right on the doorstep of the majors and Bleacher Report's Joel Reuter predicted that the Cardinals will use the trade deadline as a way to free up a spot for him.

"The St. Louis Cardinals have been better than expected this season in what was expected to be a retooling year, but with a 3-8 record and a minus-20 run differential in their last 11 games, they have started to slide," Reuter said. "In other words, they could still wind up being sellers at the trade deadline.Starting pitchers Erick Fedde (13 GS, 3.53 ERA, 73.2 IP) and Miles Mikolas (13 GS, 4.48 ERA, 66.1 IP) are both free agents at the end of the year and will be obvious trade candidates if they opt to sell.

"That would open a spot in the starting rotation for one of their young arms, and Quinn Mathews stands as the best of the bunch. The 24-year-old posted a 2.76 ERA, 0.98 WHIP and 202 strikeouts in 143.1 innings across four minor league levels last year in his pro debut. He missed a month in April this year with a shoulder injury, but he is back stretching out his arm at Triple-A Memphis in preparation for his MLB debut later this year."

This is just a hypothetical prediction, but it makes sense. The Cardinals are cold right now. They are still above .500, but it wouldn't hurt to infuse the roster with even more youth as they try to make a run at a playoff spot. Matthews is going to be a big piece of this franchise at some point. Could that come over the next month or so?