Cardinals Predicted To Use Young Catcher As Trade Bait

The St. Louis Cardinals have a lot of tough decisions to make ahead of the trade deadline, but they all revolve around one question: who will the Cardinals look to use as trade bait this season?

A lot of people expect the Cardinals will look to cut ties with expiring players like Erick Fedde and Ryan Helsley, but there are a lot of other options the Cardinals could unload.

Scott Plaza of Redbird Rants recently suggested the Cardinals could use third string catcher Yohel Pozo as a trade chip this trade deadline season.

"The final big league option the Cardinals could try to flip is third-string catcher Yohel Pozo. While Ivan Herrera was on the injured list, the Cardinals called up Pozo to take the load off of Pedro Pages," Plaza wrote. "With minimal playing time since Herrera has returned, Pozo is still managing to hit .320 despite only starting in six games this month.

"There probably is not much chatter around the league for Pozo, but if Herrera can return to catching semi-regularly behind Pages, then it would be in the team's and Pozo's best interest to find a new place. If he returns to Triple-A, he will be working behind the organization's top catching prospect in Jimmy Crooks, with Leonardo Bernal and Rainiel Rodriguez also waiting in the lower levels."

Pozo has been excellent for the Cardinals this season, but there's really no need to keep him on the roster. St. Louis has two very talented catchers on its roster and another who's shifted to first base. The Cardinals also have a top ranked catching prospect in the minor leagues waiting on his opportunity to crack into the big leagues.

It's hard to justify keeping Pozo on the roster at this point. His impressive play this season makes it tough to imagine the Cardinals won't entertain the idea of trading him.