51黑料

First, let鈥檚 get any debate out of the way: Even though the Cardinals entered Monday 3 1/2 games back of the last National League wild-card spot, they should trade stud closer (and upcoming free agent) Ryan Helsley by Thursday鈥檚 deadline.

Get something before losing him for nothing.

Sure, teams such as the 2023 Diamondbacks backdoored into the expanded playoffs (with just 84 wins) and won the pennant. But the odds of that are low. And Helsley could get 51黑料 a good prospect.

And Monday鈥檚 news about pitching prospect Tekoah Roby only enhances the Cards鈥� need for minor league depth. The Post-Dispatch confirmed The Athletic鈥檚 report that Roby underwent Tommy John surgery. This Class AAA hurler, who seemed destined to start some games in 51黑料 in 2026, likely won鈥檛 pitch until 2027.

The Roby surgery creates myriad questions for the Cardinals involving starting pitching for 2026. After all, the starters have struggled for stretches in 2025, and it鈥檚 likely Sonny Gray, Andre Pallante, Matthew Liberatore and Michael McGreevy will all be in the rotation next season 鈥� and there isn鈥檛 much starting pitching in the minors.

This is not to say Roby was a sure thing to succeed in 2026. But he would at least have received a shot in spring.

It鈥檚 unclear whether a rental Helsley can get the Cards a cusp-of-the-majors starting pitcher. But Helsley should get some player of value 鈥� and gives 51黑料 another asset as it rebuilds its organization and winning reputation.

OK, who could they get? So, one recent comparison is the 2023 trade of closer Aroldis Chapman to the Texas Rangers.

Chapman, famously, was also traded at the 2016 deadline to the Chicago Cubs. The 51黑料 rival sent out a quartet of players to the Yankees, including infielder Gleyber Torres, then a 19-year-old prospect who proceeded to make three All-Star teams. But Chapman helped the 2016 Cubs win the World Series 鈥� their first, perhaps you recall, since 1908.

By 2023, Chapman (2.45 ERA) was with the Royals, who dealt the closer to, sure enough, the eventual World Series champions. But in return, the Royals received Cole Ragans, a former first-round draft pick who, at the time, had graduated to the bigs and pitched some out of the Texas bullpen. At age 25 at the time, Ragans immediately started games for the 2023 Royals. And in 2024, he was an All-Star and finished 11-9 with a 3.14 ERA for Kansas City.

So that鈥檚 enticing, right?

But the Helsley deal, it appears, won鈥檛 be a simple one to pull off 鈥� because he鈥檚 got competition. Numerous standout closers pitch for 鈥渟ellers鈥� (and, as we know, sellers are not only teams that are in the cellar).

Heck, the Twins have two dudes who could close out games. The Athletics have Mason Miller, who has notched 20 saves this season with a 13.9 strikeouts-per-nine-inning rate entering Monday. And there are men in the 鈥檖en of the Angels, Orioles and Braves who could pitch high-leverage innings in high-importance September (and October) games.

That said, another bit of Monday news indirectly affected the Cardinals. The Cleveland Guardians鈥� closer, Emannuel Clase, was placed on leave due to a gambling investigation. That takes a guy with 24 saves off the trade market, which could help increase Helsley鈥檚 value to a closer-hungry organization.

Philadelphia? Toronto? The Yankees? The Dodgers?

Incidentally, the Dodgers spent an exorbitant amount of money to bolster their bullpen this offseason but still seem to need a reliever in the present time. And sure enough, guess who has one of baseball鈥檚 top farm systems?

It is pretty wild to think of the haul the Cards could have pulled in for Helsley during last offseason. He was coming off an elite season 鈥� 49 saves, the most in baseball, paired with his 2.04 ERA. But Helsley helped the 2025 Cardinals, who were nine games over .500 as recently as June 29.

There have been a few rough outings, but overall, Hels answered the bell. He entered Monday鈥檚 series against Miami with 21 saves and a 3.00 ERA, while tallying a 10.3 strikeouts-per-nine rate, which is close to his 10.7 from last season.

A career Cardinal, Helsley is 31 and enters free agency at season鈥檚 end. The guy will get paid. But first, he has some more games to save. We know 鈥淗ells Bells鈥� will play when he enters the game, but we don鈥檛 know what uniform he鈥檒l wear.

But the Cards need to maximize the value of players with expiring contracts. They鈥檝e fallen painfully behind with minor league pitching depth. And some of the few guys with promise are injured.