The St. Louis Cardinals are in the middle of a full-scale rebuild right now.
They cut ties with three veterans, Sonny Gray, Willson Contreras, and Nolan Arenado, in trades this offseason. This comes a few months after they traded a trio of expiring relievers to different contenders at the trade deadline last season.
The Cardinals likely aren’t done unloading veterans off their roster for prospect capital. They have a handful of players they could trade in the coming weeks to net more top prospects to add to their farm system.
If you like our content, choose Sports Illustrated as a preferred source on Google.
Ryan Murphy of Just Baseball recently suggested the Cardinals should trade All-Star infielder Brendan Donovan in the coming weeks before the offseason ends.
Brendan Donovan should be traded in the coming weeks
Sep 13, 2025; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; St. Louis Cardinals second baseman Brendan Donovan (33) hits a solo home run against the Milwaukee Brewers in the third inning at American Family Field. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-Imagn Images | Benny Sieu-Imagn Images
“Among these players, there are a few who stand out above the rest. In particular, Alec Burleson and Brendan Donovan should command solid returns for the Cardinals,” Murphy wrote. “Donovan has been an above-average player throughout his big-league career to this point. Over four seasons, he has a 119 wRC+ and 10.1 fWAR. He is a solid utility player and even brought home a Gold Glove award in 2022.”
Cutting ties with Donovan makes a lot of sense. He’s on an expiring contract and it doesn’t seem like he’s going to sign a new deal with the Cardinals. Plus, he’s unlikely to still be in his prime by the time the Cardinals are contending again.
As a result, a trade would make sense and there should be no shortage of suitors for the All-Star infielder.
The Seattle Mariners have been closely linked to Donovan this winter. Seattle lost Jorge Polanco to the New York Mets in free agency. The Mariners are also seemingly ready to lose Eugenio Suárez in free agency, too. Adding a versatile defender like Donovan would bolster the lineup quite a bit.
The San Francisco Giants have also been closely linked to Donovan, though not as close as the Mariners are. Still, they would make a lot of sense as a fit. The front office has also been very aggressive over the last year.
More MLB: Cardinals Slugger Quickly Emerging As Offseason Trade Candidate