Yankees 'Might As Well' Try To Ignite Cardinals Trade Deadline Fire Sale

The St. Louis Cardinals and New York Yankees could soon become trade partners depending on how the rest of July pans out for both well-respected organizations.

Although the Cardinals are within striking distance of a playoff spot, there's plenty of baseball left to play before the July 31 trade deadline. If St. Louis falls out of contention over the coming weeks, there's a chance the 11-time World Series champions will look to sell.

The Yankees, who hope to win their 28th World Series title this fall after losing to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 2024 Fall Classic, could be the spark that ignites a Cardinals fire sale.

"As far as top prospects go, the Yankees don't have a ton to offer," Bleacher Report's Kerry Miller wrote Tuesday when discussing his predictions for this summer's trade deadline. "But even though they're already on track to pay a hefty luxury tax bill, money should be no object for them and they could go get a pricy-for-multiple-years guy like Sandy Alcantara, Mitch Keller or—should the Cardinals continue to falter and embrace a fire sale—Sonny Gray. And, well, if they're already calling about Gray, they might as well ask about Nolan Arenado, Phil Maton and Ryan Helsley while they're at it, as those are the other problem areas the Yankees might need to address."

After failing to trade Arenado this past offseason, the Cardinals could be motivated to trade the 10-time Gold Glove third baseman before July 31, given that homegrown star Nolan Gorman is practically waiting for his turn to take over at 3B.

Trading Gray, who exercised his full no-trade clause over the winter, to the Yankees this summer seems unlikely -- especially considering that the 35-year-old struggled during his campaign with the Bronx Bombers in 2018.

Maton and Helsley will become free agents this upcoming offseason, so if St. Louis falls out of playoff contention before the July 31 deadline, the Cardinals and Yankees look to make an exchange for both right-handed relievers. Adding Arenado to the blockbuster would be tricky but it's not impossible.