Top 3 Cardinals Players 'Most Likely To Be Traded' Before Deadline Revealed

The St. Louis Cardinals must finish July strongly or they could be looking at a busy trade deadline, during which they part ways with several vital assets.

After beginning the second half of their season Friday night against the Arizona Diamondbacks with a 7-3 loss, the Cardinals are 7 1/2 games behind the first-place Chicago Cubs in the National League Central and 2 1/2 games out of an NL Wild Card spot.

If St. Louis continues to drop crucial games as the July 31 trade deadline inches closer, the Cardinals might be forced to part ways with three valuable relievers.

"Cardinals departing president of baseball operations John Mozeliak has said repeatedly that the club’s course of action at the Deadline -- becoming buyers, sellers or even both -- will be determined by where the club sits in the standings in late July," MLB.com's John Denton wrote Saturday afternoon as he explained how the Cardinals might approach the trade deadline. "The club opens after the break with six road games against the D-backs and (Colorado) Rockies before coming home to host the (San Diego) Padres for a critical four-game series from July 24-27. Do well in that series and Oliver Marmol’s Cards might be able to pass Mike Shildt’s Padres. Get beaten up and the Cards could gut their roster over the final days of July. Relievers Ryan Helsley, Phil Maton and Steven Matz are the players most likely to be traded because of their expiring contracts and MLB’s dearth of quality relievers."

Helsley, Maton and Matz have been reliable and consistent in the Cardinals' bullpen this season but with all three becoming free agents after this season ends, trading them before the deadline might be in the club's best interest.

Considering that St. Louis is rebuilding and might not make the postseason this year, trading Helsley, Maton and Matz could tremendously help the Cardinals replenish their lackluster farm system.

However, St. Louis hasn't seen the playoffs since 2022 and this year's youth-laden roster seems determined to prove the naysayers wrong. It'll be interesting to see how Mozeliak handles his last trade deadline at the helm.