MLBTR Chat Transcript

I’m sorry in advance to the people having to scroll past this… But here’s a little write-up I did last night covering a potential Rangers/Cardinals trade. Here ya go:

Trade proposal:

In light of this move, I think the Rangers and Cards could be trade partners.

The Players:
The Arenado trade leaves the Cards with one expendable Matt Carpenter. He has 18.5 mil remaining on his contract for 21’ with a vesting option for 22’. He’d be a bench bat at best in St. Louis, and an entirely too expensive one for that matter.

That leads us to subject B: Rougned Odor. Odor, on the other hand, has two years 24 mil remaining on his deal (12 mil AAV) with a club option worth 13.5 mil in 23’. He’s been pushed out of his position recently by the up-and-coming Nick Solak who’s expected to be the opening day 2B in Texas.

Why the deal could happen:
Both Carpenter and Odor have floated into mediocrity in recent years (sunk is another way to put it), and their respective teams have been trying to find outs for a while. Carpenter is no longer part of the Cards’ future plans, and with 1 year left on his deal there’s really no reason for him to be riding the bench with 18 mil still invested in him. Odor was once thought to be a future perennial all-star in Texas, but has since fallen to the Odor we know and love today. He’s still only 26, but his lack of improvement has began to make the organization impatient in recent years.

Where they fit:
Carpenter would man the hot corner in Texas as the stopgap to the much anticipated Josh Jung this season. And while Texas has an influx of left-handed bats, the swapping of Odor would negate that issue (and it’s only for one season). Carpenter’s arrival would also push Elvis Andrus to the bench, causing him to be spun into a backup infield role (mainly a backup third-baseman to Carpenter).

Odor’s arrival in St. Louis would make him the primary 2B there as Kolten Wong’s tenure as a RedBird appears to be over. That move would push the young Tommy Edman into a utility role for the upcoming season(s) as well. By the way, despite the St. Louis crowd’s goo-gooing over Edman recently, it is worth noting that he took a significant step back last season from his exciting 2019 campaign. Most notably, his BABIP fell from .346 in 2019 to a more realistic .301 in 2020. Never through his minor-league career did he ever show signs of being the player he was in 19’ except for in one 66 game stint in low-A during 2016. A utility role better fits his player profile over being the starting 2B.

Literally the only thing wrong with this:
The three words that nobody ever wants to hear in their lives or in their families’ lives… No. Trade. Clause. Yes, Carpenter has a NTC. A dampener for sure, but maybe the thought of being a starting 3B would please him?

The final deal:
Cardinals get: Rougned Odor and 3 mil
Rangers get: Matt Carpenter

The Cards would cut an old, expensive, un-needed player in exchange for a younger, higher potential player with 3 million dollars. The Rangers would get a viable stopgap for Jung and half-platoon partner for Elvis while cutting 9 mil off of the books for 22’.

Thoughts?