After missing the postseason for the third straight year in 2025, the St. Louis Cardinals have work to do this offseason. The time has come for them to finally rebuild and set the stage for the next generation of talent.

This offseason may include some trades of fan favorites. The Cardinals need to get younger and add some pitching to their mix for 2026 and beyond, and in order to do that, big moves must be made.

Ken Rosenthal, Katie Woo and Will Sammon of The Athletic noted that among the Cardinals to be potentially traded is All-Star Brendan Donovan.

Cardinals Should Capitalize On Donovan’s Value

“While the organization holds Donovan in high regard, the argument to move him involves the timing of the Cardinals’ next competitive window. Donovan will turn 29 in January and has two years remaining before free agency.”

With top prospect JJ Wetherholt likely to be ready by Opening Day in 2026, the Cardinals can afford to move Donovan. Of all their trade chips, his value is the highest and it likely won’t ever be higher than it is now.

Jeff Passan of ESPN predicted that the Cardinals will trade Donovan to the Cleveland Guardians this winter, and that fit makes sense given Cleveland’s strong farm system and assistant general manager Rob Cerfolio’s history with the Guardians organization.

But Donovan is by far the Cardinals best trade chip, and they might miss out on a king’s ransom if they don’t trade him now while his value is high.

The Cardinals also have a ton of left-handed hitters and need to find a way to clear out their logjam. Moving Donovan would allow them to do that.

Sonny Gray and Nolan Arenado are expected to be moved, but Donovan is also part of that list and could bring back a massive haul of top prospects. They can also address their pitching with trades such as these.

Players such as Alec Burleson and Ivan Herrera should be off limits in trade talks, as they both have several years of control left. But it’s going to take a while for the Cardinals to be back in contention, so moving Donovan now would allow them to focus almost solely on the future and building a better team after the 2026 season.

We’ll see what kind of interest the Cardinals receive in Donovan.

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