St. Louis Cardinals HUNT Rule 5 Draft SLEEPERS—Who Can CONTRIBUTE in 2026? Winter Meetings Update!

St. Louis Cardinals HUNT Rule 5 Draft SLEEPERS—Who Can CONTRIBUTE in 2026? Winter Meetings Update!

The St. Louis Cardinals aren’t swinging for the fences in free agency, but they could use that rule five draft as a way to improve their roster in 2026. We’ll tell you how. You are Locked on Cardinals, your daily St. Louis Cardinals podcast, part of the Locked On podcast network, your team every day. Hey there Cardinal fans. I’m JD Haford, a former national radio sports anchor, born and raised in St. Louis and a lifetime Cardinals fan. And welcome to another episode of Locked on Cardinals, part of the Locked on Podcast Network, now the number one sports podcast network. Uh thank you to all of our everydayers for being here with us this entire time and for continuing to be here with us. Uh for those of you who are new, welcome in. I hope you enjoy the content. This is a show serving Cardinal Nation and giving you all the info about the birds on the bat. Today’s episode brought to you by FanDuel. If you want to be right in the middle of the action this season, visit fanol.com and place your NFL live bets all season long. On today’s show, we’ll be discussing uh the latest ongoings from the winter meetings, including the two big free agent signings. Kyle Schwarber and Edwin Diaz have decided where they’re going to play for the foreseeable future. What’s the latest chatter on any possible Cardinals moves? We’ve got the draft lottery coming up tonight, which is exciting. And the Cardinals will be involved with that obviously as well. But we’re going to start today talking about the rule five draft which uh is going to take place on Wednesday and we want to get ahead of that and to help us sip through all of this goodness is our guy Thomas Goane from redirdrants.com. Thomas good afternoon. How are you brother? All right. You are on. I’m muted. So I guess now now I’m doing better. Off to a firing start. This is good. Hey, it’s a Tuesday. It’s a Tuesday. Give us a minute. I know. We’re all We’re all coming back from vacations and stuff. It’s all good. But, uh, how are things with you, dude? Other than being muted. You good? Oh, yeah. I’m doing well. Yep. Loving this time of the year. We got some action in the winter meetings. We’ve got it’s it’s 50 degrees here, so I can go outside and not freeze. Yeah. There you go. We should be outside doing this podcast then, Thomas. What are we doing? The other day it was like 35 and I went outside to grill and felt like it was summer. I was like, I’m taking advantage of sunshine for a day. This is this is fantastic. Um it’s exciting times for baseball fans whether you’re in a major market or not because at this point in the winter meetings, there’s always the hope and the belief that your team might do something entertaining and positive. We are still waiting on any Cardinals moves. Obviously, if something breaks, we’ll let you know. Uh, but one thing we know that they will have some interest in is the rule five draft. Again, for those not familiar, the MLB rule five draft is the annual draft where teams can select unprotected minor league players from other organizations, preventing talent hoarding by uh making players eligible after a certain amount of time in the minor leagues if they’re not added to the 40man roster. Uh, obviously the big rule is though that, you know, if you draft a guy, they got to stay on your active MLB roster. They got to be on not the 40man, but they got to be on your active MLB roster. Uh, and if they aren’t there for the entire season, uh, you have to offer them back to the original team for half the draft fee, which is 50k of the 100k that that it cost to take somebody. Last time the Cardinals did this, Ryan Fernandez, who did quite well for them in 2024. Last year, obviously a different story, but this is where the scouting department and the organization’s eye for talent comes into play. This is where, you know, the skills that Heim Bloom and his teammates have assembled uh can make a dent and perhaps bring somebody in that can help this team next year. Now, you recently put together a list of some names that you think would be players that the Cardinals might have some interest in over at redwood rants.com. I’m going to put that link in the description for all of you to go read the write up in it in its full in its glory. Uh, but let’s go through some of these names real quick and why you think they uh would make sense for the Cardinals. Let’s start with the right-hander from the White Socks, Payton Plet. Uh, what is it about Payton that you think might be something the Cardinals have interest at? He’s probably the best pitcher in the rule five draft this year from the White Socks. Pton is uh he’s 24. He’s got a solid fast ball, mid 90s. His curve ball has ridiculous spin rates. Uh he he found his touch as a reliever this year with the White Socks. think that’s something that might be interesting to the Cardinals. Right-handed pitcher, he could slot in nicely in the bullpen there. I I don’t think there’s too much of a concern with him. He’s he’s got solid stuff on his breaking balls. His fast ball is fast enough with some room to grow. I think he’d be an excellent reliever choice for the Cardinals in the rule five. Now, the Cardinals will be selecting. They’re at number 11. Now, obviously, not everybody’s going to take people, so there’s possibilities that they move up. Uh just so uh just everybody’s aware though it’s not like they just you know it’s like hey whoever gets here first picks this guy. So uh you know obviously if somebody like uh PLT if the Cardinals have interest in him some other people are going to have interest in these guys as well. So just keep that in mind but if they slide to where the Cardinals are then cool you know the Cardinals can take a chance on these guys if they like him. Uh next guy on your list was Felipe de la Cruz from the Mets. What you tell us about him? The most intriguing thing about him to me well there’s two things. One, he’s left-handed, so he can take John King’s spot. If we trade Jojo Romero, he can come. I’m not saying he’s gonna be a closer, but he’s a left-handed reliever for us at least. And then the other intriguing thing is his 13.2 Ks per nine in doublea last year. It was only 39 innings, but that’s still an impressive figure as a as a lefty reliever. Yeah. And and we think about some of the the the good pitchers that are in the Cardinal system and how well they did, you know, like a Bryson Mottz how well they did at DA last year. I mean, there’s no guarantees that these things will will go with them to Memphis to AAA and they’ll be just as good, but it just shows you that there there’s something to work with there, which is uh you know, when you hear 13.2 per nine. Yeah. Uh we’ll take that. And last time I checked, last time I checked, the Cardinals do not have a whole lot of left-handers just waiting in the wings, uh relief wise, at least uh to to be available. So, I’m very curious to what they’re going to do if they do decide to sh trade Jojo Romero this year because there there’s just nothing on the 40 that is available right now for them. So, it’s going to be interesting. So, that’s why that would make sense. Uh you got Grant Kip. Uh he’s in the Cubs organization right now. It’s always nice to steal from your rivals. What is it about Mr. Kip that looks good to you? Stealing him from the Cubs is what’s interesting. Um I said in the piece it he’s a he was a starting pitcher in the minors. I he wouldn’t be that for us probably to make that jump from double A all the way to the majors as a starter but he would be an interesting long reliever for us and eventually down the road maybe a starter. I’m think like a Kyle Ahee mold something like that maybe qu or Matthew Liberator where you give him some relief innings let him get familiar get his feet wet and then maybe stretch him out towards the end of the year. Uh 4.22 22 RA in double A 110 strikeouts 108 innings nothing special or fantastic it’s just useful and I think that’s one of the themes of the rule five draft yeah and we’ll remind people of this too this is not like the amateur draft where there’s just superstars available like these people are available for a reason you know there’s probably some good things there’s probably some not so good things there uh that you you’ll have to be aware of but you’re hoping that when you would take one of these guys bring them into the organization that they would able be able to unlock whatever it is that they saw in them to uh make them worthy of being one of these draft picks because again, you got to keep them on the roster all year. You got to offer them back, which doesn’t mean they have to go back. The other team can say, “No, we’re cool. Keep them.” But, uh, it’s part of the the whole gig here. Uh, let’s go with Tyler Vogle from the Giants. Mr. Vogle, what do you got for us? Uh, great fast ball. Touches 97, upper 90s. Um, he has reverse splits, so while he’s right-handed, he does well against left-handed batters. They hit just 183 against him last year. Solid strikeouts, 10.2 per nine, 2.88 erra. Um, he made his way all the way up to AAA, although that’s that’s is where he started to struggle. His breaking balls are effective as well. Once again, just a solid guy. He’s he’s right-handed, but the reverse splits would be nice. Should move as Jojo Romero or or to take John King’s spot. Yeah. You know, if you’re if you’re not going to be able to sign a lefty that can get lefties out, why not a righty that can get lefties out? Remember Andre Palante was very successful at that for for quite some time. Uh, finally, RJ Pettit from the Tigers. What can you tell us about him? Big boy. Um, let’s get R.J. Pettit and Joel Poso as a as a battery meet next year. Thick, man. Why not? It’s the thick battery there. He’s 6’8, 300 lb. His numbers are the size jumps out, but his numbers are also respectable. He had a 244 RA, 10.7Ks per nine. He made all that to to AAA. His slider is his best pitch. It got a whiff rate above 53% and the Cardinals focused on slider usage in their prospects last year. So, that might be a nice pairing as well. Also 68. Like, let’s just see him on the mountain for a little bit. Why not? Maybe we’ll sell a couple extra tickets because we have a 68. extension, you know, like you go the Stackcast era, you know, it’s one of the things like Chris Roy Croft, you know, it’s one of the reasons why people want to continue to work with him because he’s just a big dude. You feel like you can maybe do something with him. Uh, and that would be But yeah, 68300, dude. Bring me the meats. Let’s go. I want this. He lands and he’s halfway to the plate already, I’m pretty sure. I love it. Like, why not? Let’s bring him that. He’s immediately my favorite guy on your list already. I don’t even care if he’s the best pitcher on the list. I just want to see this huge left tackle pitching for the Cardinals at some point. I think that would imagine if there’s a brawl on the field and we’ve got RJ like him hurdle on the fence in the outfield. Remember was like Giovanni Gyos a few years ago. If you see RJ Pett coming over, everybody just leaves. We win the fight automatically. There’s no if you’re gonna go up and into somebody like, you know, maybe a Pete Crow Armstrong at some point for the Cubbies, you think he’s gonna, you know, charge the mound on a guy at 6 300? I don’t think so, but I would love to see him try. But yeah, we’re not advocating for anybody to be hurt. Don’t do that. Name the Cardinals left unprotected uh on the other side of the coin here uh that people seem interested in is the lefty Pete Hansen. And we lefties are obviously it’s a it’s a very shallow uh amount of lefties that are available as far as the free agent market goes. Uh 2022 third round pick out of Texas. Finished with 3.93 erra, 123ks, 37 walks in 137 and a third innings of double A. Uh fast ball hits about 92. Uh good chase rate on the slider, good change up. uh you know, there’s only so many spots that the Cardinals could uh you know, protect. Uh so this was one of them. They’re like, “Oh, we don’t want to lose him, but hopefully uh you know, he he’s able to come back to us, but it’s somebody that has been brought up multiple times by, you know, national media guys that, you know, hey, this is a guy that some of these other teams might be looking at.” And that’s simply because left-handers are are not easy to find these days. It’s one of the reasons why we think Jojo Romero’s market uh is so strong right now as far as his trademark. You know what? We’re going to get into that here in just a bit. We’re going to talk to trade market with the Cardinals and who Thomas thinks is probably going, who he thinks is probably staying, and maybe some teams that that fit these certain players if the Cardinals were to make a deal. We’ll get into that next on Locked on Cardinals. NFL Sundays move fast, one big play, and suddenly everything feels different. That’s why live betting with FanDuel is as exciting as it gets. like it is a lot of fun because you’re not just watching the game anymore. You’re actually reacting to it in real time. FanDuel let you place bets as the action unfolds. Every drive, every momentum swing, every highlight moment. Live betting is it’s the best when you’re in a game that’s just going back and forth all the time because then you got to kind of key on who you think’s going to be that next hot receiver or quarterback or maybe something on the defensive side. Momentum flips. Uh that’s what makes it the most fun. uh let you jump right into the moment with FanDuel. They give you the live spreads and money lines adjusting instantly. Player props update as guys heat up. You can bet on the next touchdown or the next drive result and a whole lot more. Every snap, every drive, every possibility. So, if you want to be right in the middle of the action this season, visit fan.com and place your NFL live bets all season long. That’s fuel.com to place your NFL live bets all season long. FanDuel, the game moves fast and so can you. Thanks for making locks on Cardinal your first listen of the day and thank you for making locked on the number one sports podcast network. You already live your team every day. Now take it up a level and go add free. Join the everyday club today and get locked on Cardinals with no interruptions. Members only Discord access and more. All for just $5 a month or 50 bucks a year. Go to locked onstlcardinals.supcast.com or check the link in the show notes to learn more. Thomas Goane from redwood ranch.com with us here today. We’re talking uh winter meeting stuff, the latest rumors of what’s going on with the Cardinals. Uh we know that they want to make some deals. We heard Ali last night say, you know, there’s some stuff’s coming. It’s going to happen. He didn’t get into any specifics, but we all know that there are going to be some deals made. Who is going to go first and where they’re going to land? That’s the real question. Uh we’re gonna try to play Nostradamus here and uh see where we think or who is going to go first. Um of the list I’m gonna just the names that we know are probably available, right? They’re listening on Nolan Arnonado and Brendan Donovan, Jojo Romero, Wilson Contrarus, Lars Nupar, Nolan Gorman, Alec Burlson. These are all names that has been reported that teams have shown interest in. Of that group, who do you think goes first, Thomas? probably Jojo Romero. Uh I think the trade for Aronado is too complicated. I think there’s other dominoes that need to fall first, namely Alex Bregman. Brendan Donovan, I think that’s a little bit more complicated as well, just because of his value. There’s going to be a lot more a lot bigger names going with him, potentially more names, a major leager possibly. Uh Trading Reliever is much more seamless, I think. And Jojo Romero has the interest throughout the league. It’s been reported it’s it’s a one-year deal for him that he has left. That’s a pretty straightforward deal. So, I’d imagine he’s one of the first to go. That’s not to say that he’ll get the greatest return out of the bunch, but I I think he’d be one of the first players to be traded. And we just saw uh you know, we saw the the trade with Jose Ferrer from the Nationals. Uh he goes to Seattle, got you know, a top 50 prospect in return for him with Gary Ford going from Seattle to the Nationals. Now, granted, he is younger. he is cheaper. So that obviously plays a role in things. We also just saw Edwin Diaz get a monster deal with the Dodgers, which is something that we predicted weeks ago that I mean the Dodgers, where was the one weakness? It was going to be in the bullpen. That was their issue last year. They go on to win a championship anyway, but rookie Sasaki was not going to be their closer anymore. So uh they they went out and took the best guy on the market for three years at $69 million. It shows you how teams are looking at the uh the bullpen this year like you know guys like a Romero what they might be worth. You know he’s not he’s making what like five million something like that this year. Um at least that’s what he’s projected I believe. But it it’s it means people are going to be looking for and we mentioned that there are not a lot of left-handers that are out there like really good ones. You know you’ve seen a lot of the big right-handed closers. those guys are coming off the board, but the lefties, they’re all just kind of meh, you know, and if Jojo Romero is an upgrade over those guys, which some people think he is, uh, teams are going to be calling about him. So, uh, it’ll be nice to see what they could get for, uh, a return on Jojo Romero. Uh, you mentioned the, uh, the the Brennan Donovan situation where, you know, we’ve heard there’s a lot of interest there of the teams that you’ve we’ve all heard have been reported. You know, we’re talking about Seattle’s and Cleveland’s and the Dodgers have been in. Where do you think he would be the best fit in your opinion? I think the Yankees, they’ve had interest in for two years. They they need some sort of utility guy that they can play. They’ve got other versatile players as well, but to throw Donovan in there as well, he’d be a nice left-handed compliment to Aaron Judge and Jean Carlos Stanton. He could slot in leadoff for them if if they wanted him to with his on base. He is gold glove worthy. I think that he makes a good fit for the Yankees and more importantly I think the Yankees are a good fit for the Cardinals when it comes to prospects. They’ve got Elmer Rodriguez there. They’ve got Carlos Lrange Lrange I think that’s he he’s there too. So their their pitching prospects are are top of the of the list. I think Yankees would be a good fit for Donnie. Yeah, I got a uh soft spot for Lrange. I just I find him so appealing. Obviously the Yankees do too for obvious reasons. If I like him, of course the Yankees are gonna like him, too. Uh but yeah, that one that one makes sense. And I wonder too because you’re watching the AL East. You you’re seeing, you know, Boston makes the move for Sunny Gray. You’re seeing Toronto make the move for Dylan C. Kyle Tucker’s going there next is the is the next rumor. Uh you’re seeing Baltimore do some things. And yet here are the Yankees just kind of sitting there in silence, twiddling their thumbs. And I I it’s got to eat at them that they’re not doing anything right now. I know the fans got to be losing their minds. Uh Locked on Yankees host uh Stacy Gatsulius. She was just texting with us in the group chat. She’s like, “And here we are not doing any. They’re already getting restless.” I never thought about that perspective. Yeah. I’m like done. Yeah. If you’re if you’re feeling a little itch in your pants because your guys aren’t doing anything. Come get them. And I wonder if that’s something that’ll work out for the Cardinals where they’re like, “Dude, we got to do something. What do we’re not doing anything?” And look at our whole division. So, uh, Yankees, uh, there’s a Brennan Donovan waiting for you. It’ll just just take a couple of your really good pictures that aren’t going to impact your team this year, so send them our way. Um, who are some of the guys like out of that list of people that you do not think the Cardinals are going to move? Like you’re like, “Yeah, they might listen, but I don’t think they’re going anywhere.” There’s three that I have as greater than 50% chance to stay in my mind. It’s Nolan Gorman, Alec Berles, and Lars Newbar. For for Gorman, I his value is too low. I don’t know if he if the Cardinals need him with JJ Weatherholt, but his value is too low. It’d be kind of silly of them to trade him at this point. Um, Alec Burles, they seem to like him quite a bit and I I he’s warmed up for me as well. I can’t say I’m the huge the greatest Alec Burles defender, but I I see the value there. And then Lars Newar as well. I I wrote Derek G brought this up, but late November, I wrote that new seems like a perfect trade deadline candidate. Let him show those first few months that he’s healthy, that he can play center field again, that his offensive output is back to what it was a couple years ago. And then as a left-handed bat who can play all three outfield positions with plus defense, his trade value will be astronomical probably. So I think Gorman, Berles, and Newar stay out of out of the other rumors. It greater than 50% chance they stay. How great I can’t say for sure. Yeah. And I feel the same way about Gorman for sure because um like you just hate to not give him a you still have never given him a full year. Like it still hasn’t happened. And maybe he doesn’t deserve it. Maybe you’ve seen enough of him and you’re like, “Look, he’s never going to figure out that hole in his swing that leads to this many strikeouts and the the the home run power is just going to be untapped potential because he doesn’t square it up enough.” Maybe that is what happens. I don’t know. But if you do move him again, you you like you said, you’d be trading him at his lowest value. It’s the same people who get loud about Jordan Walker. They’re like, “Get rid of him. He stinks.” But don’t you want to give them a chance to at least improve that value a little bit in a season where you’re not expecting to contend for everything? It’s all about watching these young guys come together as a group. Uh I’m willing to do that for another year and uh you know hopefully it pays off for him. And if it doesn’t, what is it really costing you? You’re not gonna get anything for these guys yet they’re all that substantial. Like you’re not missing the boat by not trading them right now. whereas you could miss the boat if you don’t move a Donovan or a Jojo Romero. Um Alec Burlesen, you mentioned, uh Silver Slugger, uh a guy that obviously is very popular in the clubhouse. I I think the same thing goes with him is like the limitations that we see. So does everybody else? Like where are you putting him? You going to put him at first? You’re not going to let him roam around in the outfield too much. So um I don’t know what you’re getting for him trade value if uh a team is looking for just a D8. I I don’t know. That’s the place where I’m like I don’t really think I think he’s more valuable to the Cardinals than he would be to another team right now. So, it just doesn’t feel like that that would be a fit to move him unless somebody comes in and just goes nuclear and is like, “We’ll give you all of this and I guess that’s what you do.” But, uh, for my sake, I bought a whole collection of Alec Brosson baseball cards about a year ago. So, I kind of hope he continues to They’re nothing. I guess there’s no value, but do keep playing. But you’re investing you’re investing your time and money into him being a member of this team moving forward. I would do that, too. Like I bought a pair of Ivon Herrera’s uh game issued pants last year because I was like, look, I’m not going to wear them. Obviously, I’m not going to put him on and run around, but I I think this is a guy that’s going to be a big piece of the Cardinal future, and I want to be on board with that and say, “Look, I I got ahead of the game, and this is somebody I want. I’ve been looking for Weatherhold stuff, but there’s not much out there for you.” I think if this video gets enough likes on YouTube, you need to wear the Herrera pants the next time we we get together. I could do it. Uh I’ll just I don’t know. Flexible. I don’t know if I Yeah, there you go. We’ll figure it. It’s a torso. It’s a torso only video, so it doesn’t matter. It is. It is. You wouldn’t even know I have legs usually on this podcast. Uh coming up though, let’s talk about uh what else is going on in Major League Baseball. Schwarber and Diaz, they have signed uh their effect on the Cardinals plans moving forward. 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To secure a free month of our brand new Everyday Club, just tag our National Lock on Podcast Network account on any social platform and we’ll drop you a code. be one of the first to join the everyday club to get your favorite show. Add free and exclusive access to the membersonly discord channel. Thomas Goane from redwoodrants.com is with us. All right, let’s talk about everything else going on in Major League Baseball’s winter meetings and how that’s affecting the Cardinals. Schworber and Diaz are the big names that have signed on Tuesday morning. Uh most people were kind of waiting on the Schwarber domino to to fall and that would get things moving along. Um, he is going back to the Phillies. Five years, $150 million. That’s 30 million annually, uh, for a DH, which is crazy money, but 56 home runs is also crazy as well. Uh, the best part about this, in my opinion, Thomas, is the fact that, uh, he is not in the NL Central. There were, you know, Reds fans and Pirates fans were like, we’re going to get him. And, uh, you know, it it started to make believers specifically out of Reds fans. I don’t think any of us thought Pittsburgh was a realistic option, but uh the Reds really thought they had a chance and apparently they just wouldn’t meet the financial spot that the the Phillies were willing to go to, which was five years at 150. Uh your thoughts on that deal and uh are you as happy as I am that we don’t have to see him in the Central again? Yeah, quite happy. That’s that’s where it starts for me is the lack of him in the NL Central. I think it also I know the Phillies are probably a super team, but the fact that they’re not the Yankees or the Dodgers also makes me happy. And the fact that the Dodgers are going to have some more competition in Philly next year should also be exciting. Yeah, we mentioned uh you know, Diaz going to Edwin Diaz, not his brother Alexis, uh who I don’t even know if he’s on a roster anymore. He kind of flamed out pretty quickly. He was with the Dodgers last year for a little bit. Uh but anyway, Edwin Diaz goes uh three years, $69 million, becomes the highest paid closer in history. Um yeah, you know, I mean, it did shock me that he went to the Dodgers. The Dodgers had a need and they’re they they’re going to throw money at any problem that they have. So, um just shows you uh you know, it’s going to bump up the level of Jojo’s uh market if uh he does get traded that maybe it makes him worth more because he’s not getting paid nearly as much. and prove that he can close if you want him to. Uh was able to do that for the Cardinal successfully at the end of last year. Uh Pete Lonzo is the next big name that that people are looking at that’s not a that’s not a pitcher because there’s still plenty of those guys still out there. Uh where do you think Pete Lonzo lands? Because uh it just feels like the Mets are doing whatever they can to not have him on their team anymore, which is really wild to me because I feel like he’s been pretty darn good for them. Yeah, I the Mets seems like a good fit for them. For him, they don’t have much interest from what I’ve seen though at least. I don’t know why. I mean, he he hits home runs for them like crazy. He’d be a nice power bat behind Juan Sodto. He seems like a good fit there, but again, they just don’t seem to be interested in him. I’m not sure where he would go after that either, though. I I’ve been pushing the Boston narrative just because I want to see New York and Boston yell at each other more because it’s fun. It’s fun for us. So, uh, I thought that would be an interesting spot for him, but it just kind of blew meber’s market where he he’s two years older, uh, does not play first base, plays is just a DH, which, you know, Allonzo could be at that point. It’s, you know, sooner rather than later. Uh, people aren’t all that impressed with his defense, but I I just feel like he’s the right-handed version of him. No, he didn’t hit 56 home runs, but he’s he’s a 40 home run guy, and if you get him in the right spot, uh, I feel like those numbers could spike, too. So, uh, we’ll see. It appears that he will likely still be in the east side of things. It looks like Boston and Baltimore names that people are talking about. Uh I I really hope that the Cubs don’t pick up on this or uh anybody else in the NL Central that are that are trying to improve their offense as well. That would be upsetting. The Cubs appear to be going uh pitcher heavy. Um they got a a lot of good arms coming back, but it looks like they’re they’re going to be a player in maybe the the international market again. Uh, as well as, you know, there was that quick rumor that Zack Gallon might end up in Chicago as well. Uh, what do you think about what they’ve done so far? Uh, I’m happy that the Cubs have been quiet as a Cardinals fan. It’s nice to see that they are not making a huge push that they could. Uh, Emi, I’ve seen a lot about him. Tatsu Emi going to the Cubs potentially. You had the gallon Bob Nightingale mistake as well. So, take that for what it’s worth. Um, yeah, the starting pitcher. I don’t know if they’ll be the the tippity top, but maybe one of those higherend second tier pitchers like Gallon, maybe Walker Beller could be a good fit there, too. I just I was going through their names yesterday and I’m like, they kind of like if Justin Steel is back. I mean, how many starters are they going to have because they still got, you know, Jameson Tyion, they got Cade Horton, they coming back, he took their offer. So, uh, there are already, you know, you’ve got Boyd is still there. like there’s already kind of chalk full of starters. So, uh unless they’re trading somebody away, I was uh a little surprised that it was all starters that were being mentioned uh for the Cubs. But, uh we’ll see how it all plays out. Uh speaking of starters, Detroit Tigers apparently still dangling, trick Scooble out there. if you were Detroit, and I I’ll ask this for both guys because we’re running out of time here, but uh them trading Scooble and the Diamondbacks showing uh trade interest like moving on from Catel Marte, who they just signed last year to a six-year deal. If you’re in their shoes, are you trading Scooble if you’re Detroit, or are you going to try to run it back with them for one more year? And why is Arizona trying to move Marte already, man? the the package you’d get for Scooble would be so enticing, but I feel like you got to keep him. He’s he’s one of the best pitchers that the league has seen in the last few years. If I had my way, I would give him what I blank check. Put what you want on their scoo. We’ll sign you for 10 years. Stay here and lead us. I think that’s what I would do if I were the Tigers. Um, but I got to imagine the package they could get for him has got to be absurd. So, that might be enticing them, too. Catel Marte makes zero sense to me why they’re trying to trade him. He’s on a pretty team friendly contract. It’s 16 million. It caps out at just 22 million. He is 32 next year, so perhaps the age might be worrisome to them, but he had a career year last year. I don’t expect a lot of drop off from him. Either of those players being trading traded would be baffling to me. And the scariest part is that they would both probably go to one of those bigname teams and it’ just make it’d be so polarizing to the sport. Oh, for sure. For sure. Yeah. I that’s the only thing I can think of is they’re just like, “Hey, we’re going to put it out there and if somebody brings us, as I call it, the Godfather offer, then sure, we’ll talk about it.” Are they really trying to move Marte? I don’t know why you would want to. I love that dude. I think like if the Cardinals were in a different spot in their world and in their development, I’d be like, “Yes, go get that dude.” Because I freaking love that switch hitter with pop from both sides. He also plays a little bit of outfield, too. Uh he’s kind of like the upgraded version of Brennan Donovan in my opinion because of the power that he offers you and he’s a switch hitter. So maybe not as good defensively. I don’t really know, but it’s um I don’t know. It’s very interesting and things continue to move along in the hot stove. Um I still have not seen any updates on anything with the I was hoping you and I could break something in this video or the podcast today, but I guess not. All quiet. The only thing we’re breaking is that the Colts are signing Philip Rivers at the age of 44. That’s the only thing I’m seeing breaking uh and has nothing to do with baseball whatsoever. But uh if anything does break, obviously check out redwoodrants.com. Thomas will be all over it there. Obviously, you can find us here at Electon Cardinals and our socials as well. We’ll be able to uh help everybody through that. So, we’re waiting. We’re all waiting for something to go down. Um, not sure when or if it’s going to happen here. If you if you had to make a guess of just Jojo, that’s the number one guy gets moved at the winter meetings. If uh if if that’s the only move, it’s Jojo, you think? Yeah, I think so. Maybe Brendon Donovan, but probably Jojo. Yeah, makes sense. Makes sense. All right. Well, we will check in with Thomas again hopefully next week. Uh, give him a a follow on the socials at Thomas Goain. And thank you guys for making Loton Cardinals your first listen every day. If you haven’t already, give us a follow on X at l_cardinals at JD Sports Radio, Tik Tok, and Instagram at Lockdown Cardinals. Like, subscribe on YouTube. Help our channel and love for the Cardinals grow. For those of you on video, we’re going to send you to the first ever 247 national locked on podcast network YouTube channel on audio. Make sure your second lesson is locked on MLB. You guys are the best fans in baseball for a reason. We’ll see you next time on Locked on Cartons.

St. Louis Cardinals eye under-the-radar upgrades as the Rule 5 Draft approaches. Can a savvy bullpen addition like Peyton Pallette or a power lefty such as Felipe De La Cruz become game-changers for the 2026 roster? Host JD Hafron, joined by Thomas Gauvain of RedbirdRants.com, breaks down the top unprotected minor league arms that could fit the Cardinals’ needs and evaluates the internal risk of losing Pete Hansen.

Trade rumors swirl as JoJo Romero’s market heats up and teams like the Yankees circle Brendan Donovan. Hafron and Gauvain analyze which Cardinals—Lars Nootbaar, Nolan Gorman, Alec Burleson—are most likely to stay or go, and what returns might reshape the team’s future. The impact of Kyle Schwarber’s and Edwin Diaz’s signings, plus speculation on Pete Alonso and potential NL Central shakeups, make for a fast-paced, can’t-miss winter meetings update for any Cardinals fan.

https://redbirdrants.com/5-rule-5-draft-candidates-the-st-louis-cardinals-should-consider

0:00 — Cardinals Rule 5 Targets
10:16 — Cardinals Trade Market
23:28 — MLB Free Agency Signings

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