![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Ryan-McMahon.jpg\")
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NEW YORK, NEW YORK – AUGUST 11: Ryan McMahon #19 of the New York Yankees celebrates after scoring a run in the seventh inning against the Seattle Mariners at Yankee Stadium on August 11, 2026 in the Bronx borough of New York City. (Photo by Elsa\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n
The St. Louis Cardinals<\/a> are in the market for \u201ca short-term solution at third base,\u201d according to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.<\/a> This comes after the Cardinals lacked a clear everyday third baseman in 2026.<\/p>\n Third base was split primarily between Nolan Gorman, who played 66 games there<\/a>, and rookie Blaze Jordan, who played 52 games there in 2026.<\/a> The problem is that neither player produced consistently enough to stay there. Gorman (age 26), in the season, in 85 games, posted a .184\/.272\/.308<\/a> slash line with 9 home runs<\/a>, 33 RBI\u2019s, and a .580 OPS.<\/a> Jordan (age 23) posted a .247\/.276\/.382<\/a> slash line with 3 home runs<\/a>, 28 RBI\u2019s, and a .658 OPS.<\/a><\/p>\n Third Base Position Was Weakness For Cardinals In 2026<\/p>\n Gorman posted a -0.3 WAR<\/a> (Wins Above Replacement), while Jordan posted 0.1 in 2026,<\/a> according to Fangraphs.<\/a> The Cardinals are essentially in the market for a stopgap as they try to figure out the long-term future\/direction at third base. The Cardinals traded third baseman Nolan Arenado to the Arizona Diamondbacks<\/a> last season, and Arenado has bounced back in 2026, hitting 30 home runs<\/a> with an .806 OPS<\/a> in 522 plate appearances.<\/p>\n Free-agent options include Alec Bohm, Eugenio Suarez, Edmund Sosa, Ramon Urias, Yoan Moncado, Luis Rengifo, Amed Rosario, Santiago Espinal, Kike Hernandez, Jeimer Candelario, Leo Jimenez, and Josh Rojas, per MLB.com.<\/a> Bo Bichette is also a possibility, but it depends on whether he opts out of his current Mets contract.<\/a><\/p>\n \n Free Agent Options At Third Base For St Louis<\/p>\n The top free-agent options are Eugenio Suarez, Edmund Sosa, and Alec Bohm. Suarez is 35 and hit .212<\/a> this year with 26 home runs<\/a>, 74 RBIs, and a .740 OPS.<\/a> He\u2019s a bat-first third baseman, as he\u2019s historically a weak defender at the position, posting a -7 OAA (outs above average) in 2026, per Baseball Savant.<\/a><\/p>\n Edmund Sosa is a 30-year-old utility player with experience at third base, shortstop, and second base. In 2026, he hit .247<\/a> with 9 home runs<\/a>, 44 RBIs, and a .712 OPS.<\/a> What\u2019s interesting about Sosa is his strong defense: he posted a positive 4 OAA (outs above average) in 2026, placing him in the 85th percentile, per Baseball Savant.<\/a><\/p>\n Sosa is a right-handed hitter with strong success against left-handed pitching. In 124 plate appearances against lefties, Sosa has hit .290<\/a> with 6 home runs, 23 RBIs, a .343 on-base percentage, a .492 slugging percentage, and an .835 OPS, per ESPN.<\/a> This could be the most intriguing option for the Cardinals as they navigate the free-agent market. Another option is another Philly in Alec Bohm, a right-handed hitter who didn\u2019t have a good offensive year but doesn\u2019t strike out, whiff, or chase much. According to Baseball Savant,<\/a> he had just a 14% K rate<\/a> in 2026, ranking in the 88th percentile.<\/a><\/p>\n \n Yankees Could Look For McMahon Trade Partner<\/p>\n In the trade market, New York Post writer Joel Sherman<\/a> said the previous day that the Yankees<\/a> could try to move third baseman Ryan McMahon this offseason. McMahon, historically an elite defender, had a down year defensively and has remained a liability offensively.<\/p>\n McMahon has one year and 16 million left on his current deal, according to Spotrac.<\/a> The Yankees<\/a> would likely have to eat some of that money or throw in a decent prospect or two to make a deal. While McMahon has certainly struggled in 2026 with a .636 OPS,<\/a> he\u2019s just 31 and fits the \u201cshort-term\u201d solution at third base for the Cardinals if they decide to pursue that route.<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tMatt Cunningham<\/a> Matt Cunningham is an Endicott College Graduate with a Bachelor’s in Sport Management. He is an avid follower of Major League Baseball, a Heavy Sports Contributor for the Yankees and all 30 MLB teams, and a Member of the MLB Fan Council. More about Matt Cunningham<\/a>\t\t<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Getty NEW YORK, NEW YORK – AUGUST 11: Ryan McMahon #19 of the New York Yankees celebrates after…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":829577,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2403],"tags":[5,160,4,673,67,4311,4310],"class_list":["post-829576","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-st-louis-cardinals","tag-baseball","tag-cardinals","tag-mlb","tag-st-louis","tag-st-louis-cardinals","tag-stlouis","tag-stlouiscardinals"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@mlb\/117442484092097416","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/829576","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=829576"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/829576\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/829577"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=829576"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=829576"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=829576"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Nolan-Gorman.jpg\")
GettyPITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA \u2013 APRIL 28: Nolan Gorman #16 of the St. Louis Cardinals celebrates his solo home run with teammates during the second inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park on April 28, 2026 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Joe Sargent\/Getty Images)\n<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/10\/Edmund-Sosa.jpg\")
GettyANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA \u2013 AUGUST 28: Edmundo Sosa #33 of the Philadelphia Phillies celebrates a grand slam home run, to take a 5-3 lead over the Los Angeles Angels, during the ninth inning at Angel Stadium of Anaheim on August 28, 2026 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Harry How\/Getty Images)\n<\/p>\n