The St. Louis Cardinals have won five games in a row and are right on the heels of the Milwaukee Brewers for the third National League Wild Card spot.
The team has bounced back from a six-game losing streak quite nicely, and it will be interesting to see what they can do going forward.
Their trade deadline strategy is still unclear. They are in buyer’s territory thanks to their record, but will likely receive calls on several key players.
However, according to Bob Nightengale, two players in particular aren’t going anywhere.
“Rival teams would love to get their hands on Cardinals starters Sonny Gray and Miles Mikolas, but they have full no-trade clauses, and have no interest in waiving them,” Nightengale reported Sunday.
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Even if the Cardinals sell and teams show interest in Mikolas and Gray, the two veteran starters have the final say on where they will go thanks to their no-trade clause.
And if they don’t plan on waiving their no-trade clauses, then it’s highly likely that both pitchers will remain in St. Louis past the trade deadline.
Gray is 7-2 this season with a 3.72 ERA in 15 starts. The three-time All-Star is also averaging 9.6 strikeouts per nine innings.
Mikolas has been a different story. He’s 4-4 with a 4.35 ERA in 14 starts in what will likely be his final year in St. Louis. But he has been able to eat innings over the years for the Cardinals.
With these two pitchers seemingly off the trade block, teams may have to focus on other players on the Cardinals roster such as Ryan Helsley, Phil Maton, Steven Matz and Erick Fedde.
We’ll see where the Cardinals stand in a few weeks.
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