It certainly seems awfully petty, one general manager denouncing and demeaning another team’s surprising success with a simple yet biting two-word statement.
In a June 3 report analyzing the trade deadline approaches for all 30 MLB teams, Jeff Passan of ESPN opened his look at the St. Louis Cardinals with a comment from a rival GM who was none too happy that the Cardinals, long thought to be sellers this summer, may have actually flipped the script with their unexpected push for a playoff spot.
“It sucks,” Passan quoted the unnamed executive as saying.
Turns out, Passan elaborated, that this team official was sulking about a successful season in St. Louis likely eliminating the possibility of acquiring some valuable assets from the Cardinals roster.
“He wanted [Ryan] Helsley patrolling the back end of his bullpen, and he wanted the option to grab [starting pitchers] Steven Matz or Erick Fedde or Miles Mikolas,” Passan continued. “And because the Cardinals are playing a tremendous brand of baseball, none of those looks like an option at this point.”
But perhaps they should be.
Unexpected Success Should Not Divert Cardinals From ‘Transition Year’ Approach
In what had been labeled a “transition year” for the franchise, a chance to see what many of the team’s younger players can do if given the opportunity, St. Louis has exceeded all expectations. At 33-27 overall, 4.5 games behind the Chicago Cubs for first place in the NL Central, the Cardinals are within reach of the divisional title, and they are currently tied with San Francisco for the third and final wild card spot – although technically ahead in winning percentage – with Milwaukee sitting a half-game behind and a handful of other teams not too far back.
A lot can and will happen by the time the season reaches the All-Star break, after which most trades tend to happen. As St. Louis fans found out during the Cardinals’ nine-game winning streak in May, a single stretch of positive results can change the season outlook in a hurry. Likewise, a team can go into a tailspin and find itself on the outside looking in just as quickly.
But the Cardinals should not base their deadline decision on what happens between now and late July. President of Baseball Operations John Mozeliak made that decision long before the regular season ever began, as he looked ahead to his final year in the position and spoke about prioritizing the Cardinals’ future over their present.
“When we focus on the roster itself, obviously the theme is going to be about creating opportunity, giving some of our younger players that runway, that chance to really see what we have,” Mozeliak said before the season. “We certainly don’t want to go down that path where we start trying to move some people and then we look back and regret that.”
That desire to “see what we have” extended into the minor leagues, as the Cardinals’ plans included a significant focus on upgrading their player development system. For the team to change course midstream and make moves to improve for this season at the risk of future seasons would be irresponsible. Few things are more damaging to the long-term health of a franchise than an indecisive, wishy-washy front office that reverses course at a moment’s notice.
The 2025 season was never about just the 2025 season, and while making the playoffs is always a goal, it wasn’t the goal. So the Cardinals should stay the course, which means making the tough decision to trade valuable assets.
Cardinals Should be Sellers at Deadline, Deal Assets Like Ryan Helsley
Sure, postseason play would be great, but at what cost?
What would the Cardinals realistically need to add in order to matchup in a playoff series against the Phillies? Or the Mets? Or the Dodgers? Does it make sense to trade away the talent it would take to make that even remotely possible?
Meanwhile, the Cardinals have a few enticing trade chips that could bring in a pretty nice haul from contending teams looking for that final piece.
Helsley, of course, is at the top of that list, and he would likely be at the top of the list for several playoff-bound teams looking to solidify their bullpen. A pair of deadline deals from last season serve as potential comps to determine what a trade for Helsley could potentially send back to the Cardinals.
On July 27, the Philadelphia Phillies acquired then-31-year-old closer Carlos Estévez from the Los Angeles Angels for pitching prospects George Klassen (who would have been the No. 7 prospect in the Phillies’ system at MLB Pipeline’s midseason re-rank) and Samuel Aldegheri (who would have been No. 12).
A few days later, the San Diego Padres got closer Tanner Scott and middle reliever Bryan Hoeing from the Miami Marlins for left-handed pitcher Robby Snelling (Padres No. 2 prospect), right-handed pitcher Adam Mazur (No. 4), infielder/outfielder Graham Pauley (No. 5) and infielder Jay Beshears (No. 24).
It’s certainly worth considering.
Rival MLB GM Issues Biting 2-Word Response on Cardinals’ Success: ‘It Sucks’