The St. Louis Cardinals’ rebuild is well and truly underway with Chaim Bloom calling the shots.
On Tuesday, Bloom made his first signature move since taking over the president of baseball operations chair from John Mozeliak. He shipped three-time All-Star starting pitcher Sonny Gray to the Boston Red Sox, the team that fired him at the end of the 2023 season, for pitching prospects Brandon Clarke and Richard Fitts.
Jon Heyman of the New York Post first reported the news of the deal, and according to Alex Speier of The Boston Globe, St. Louis will also send $20 million in cash considerations to the Red Sox.
If you like our content, choose Sports Illustrated as a preferred source on Google.
What Bloom said about players Cardinals got for Gray 
Jul 7, 2025; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Richard Fitts (80) delivers a pitch during the second inning against the Colorado Rockies at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Paul Rutherford-Imagn Images | Paul Rutherford-Imagn Images
Though Gray was expensive and wouldn’t have helped much with the Cardinals’ long-term goals, he’s still a very good major league starter, and the Cardinals had to like what they got to part ways with him this early in the offseason.
So on Tuesday, it was no surprise to hear Bloom dish out heavy praise for both Fitts and Clarke in his first public comments after the deal was finalized.
“Richard Fitts has already begun his big league career, and with his power stuff and willingness to attack the strike zone, he has the ability to start games at the highest level for many years. Brandon Clarke is an exciting left-handed prospect whose ceiling rivals that of any pitcher in the minor leagues. Both have the potential to be part of our growing core for a long time, and we are happy to welcome them to the Cardinals,” Bloom said, per Bob Nightengale of USA Today.
This was Bloom’s second time experiencing a trade with the Red Sox, as he and Mozeliak facilitated the deal that sent reliever Steven Matz to Boston in July for first-base prospect Blaze Jordan. Few know the Boston farm system better, even if both Fitts and Clarke were acquired after Craig Breslow took over for Bloom in November of 2023.
Fitts has a high floor and a fairly high ceiling as well, and Clarke’s ceiling is a good bit higher. Not only did the Cardinals do well with this return, but there should be plenty of excitement for what Bloom does next with a lot of other prime trade candidates remaining on the board.
More MLB: Cardinals May Have Won Sonny Gray-Red Sox Trade With $20 Million Decision