Cardinals Trade Grade = B+

[Melville]

Just saw ESPN does not share the enthusiasm.
They gave the Sox a B+.
They gave us a C.

ESPN may well be the least competent major sports platform when it comes to baseball.

[renostl]

Cardinals trade grade

Fitts had just an OK full year for the Sox, with a 5.00 ERA in 10 starts. But he's young and there's potential there, it seems.

Clarke is among the top-five prospects for the Sox, so that's a really good return there.

GRADE: B+


Red Sox trade grade

GRADE: B


-USAToday

It appears they got a pretty good deal for Gray. While neither at this point is as good as Gray, they both appear to have enough talent to make up the difference. Who knows, maybe they'll take the next step? Cutting payroll for nobodies is something I do not accept, but it appears they got somebodies. I'm sure that there's enough talent to at least be an average pitcher. I hope.

Imagine the GM telling us that the market never materialized and at the end of the season all that's left is to pay Sonny $5 million to go away

[Melville]

Cardinals trade grade

Fitts had just an OK full year for the Sox, with a 5.00 ERA in 10 starts. But he's young and there's potential there, it seems.

Clarke is among the top-five prospects for the Sox, so that's a really good return there.

GRADE: B+


Red Sox trade grade

GRADE: B


-USAToday

A solid move.
Obviously, no one can say for certain how the future will play out.
Clarke is the classic long term high risk / high reward piece.
Fitts is the safer and less aspirational piece - but one who certainly addresses the immediate need for adding rotation arms in 2026.
So, we shall see what happens in 2026.
If the Shoe Fitts as a reasonable rotation piece who can be even slightly better than Mikolas was the past 2 years, it is a good beginning to the STL off-season.
And yes, "Shoe Fitts" has already been selected as my perfect branding for him in 2026, since it perfectly encapsulates why STL had him included in the return.

[hugeCardfan]

The best thing about this trade is it shows the Cardinals are committed to acquiring prospects and not just offloading salary. Gray wouldn't have required a ton of cash to be kicked in if the goal were just a salary dump.

These are the type of long shot prospects that very likely don't move the needle. No one is a former 1st or 2nd round pick, no one is a big threat to become a future AS or 4-6 fWAR SP. Just JAGs and depth and maybe a distant future bullpen arm in Clarke - but you can always find proven plus bullpen arms for less then $20M.

If Clarke were all that, Boston wouldn't have let him go. They traded him for a reason.

Of course they did. They traded Betts for a reason too.

[The Nard]

I have no problem with the trade. If the 2 prospects can stay healthy in 2026, they may well surprise some people.

[cardstatman]

The best thing about this trade is it shows the Cardinals are committed to acquiring prospects and not just offloading salary. Gray wouldn't have required a ton of cash to be kicked in if the goal were just a salary dump.

These are the type of long shot prospects that very likely don't move the needle. No one is a former 1st or 2nd round pick, no one is a big threat to become a future AS or 4-6 fWAR SP. Just JAGs and depth and maybe a distant future bullpen arm in Clarke - but you can always find proven plus bullpen arms for less then $20M.

If Clarke were all that, Boston wouldn't have let him go. They traded him for a reason.

Of course they did. They traded Betts for a reason too.

Was the reason maybe... Sonny Gray?

[renostl]

The best thing about this trade is it shows the Cardinals are committed to acquiring prospects and not just offloading salary. Gray wouldn't have required a ton of cash to be kicked in if the goal were just a salary dump.

These are the type of long shot prospects that very likely don't move the needle. No one is a former 1st or 2nd round pick, no one is a big threat to become a future AS or 4-6 fWAR SP. Just JAGs and depth and maybe a distant future bullpen arm in Clarke - but you can always find proven plus bullpen arms for less then $20M.

If Clarke were all that, Boston wouldn't have let him go. They traded him for a reason.

Of course they did. They traded Betts for a reason too.

Was the reason maybe... Sonny Gray?

weird

[Ronnie Dobbs]

Nice to see them eating money for a better return like the front office said they would if they needed to. Should make fans more confident that the salary will return to their previous top ten to top third levels of the past few decades like they said they would once we can get the team competitive again.

[rockondlouie]

Cardinals trade grade

Fitts had just an OK full year for the Sox, with a 5.00 ERA in 10 starts. But he's young and there's potential there, it seems.

Clarke is among the top-five prospects for the Sox, so that's a really good return there.

GRADE: B+


Red Sox trade grade

GRADE: B


-USAToday

I posted a thread before about prospect rankings. Where did the Red Sox rank Clarke? He is high strikeout/high walks. Typical of a late inning reliver but not a starter. If Bloom spends the cash saved on a younger ballplayer with years left on his contract when it's a decent trade but I'd reserve judgement on how good Clarke is unless and until he arrives in St Louis.

Clark was the BoSox #5 ranked prospect!

[rockondlouie]

Cardinals trade grade

Fitts had just an OK full year for the Sox, with a 5.00 ERA in 10 starts. But he's young and there's potential there, it seems.

Clarke is among the top-five prospects for the Sox, so that's a really good return there.

GRADE: B+


Red Sox trade grade

GRADE: B


-USAToday

It appears they got a pretty good deal for Gray. While neither at this point is as good as Gray, they both appear to have enough talent to make up the difference. Who knows, maybe they'll take the next step? Cutting payroll for nobodies is something I do not accept, but it appears they got somebodies. I'm sure that there's enough talent to at least be an average pitcher. I hope.

Agreed CC

Clark will test Bloom's development system but the upside, if they pull it off, could be a TOTR starter in 2028!

[rockondlouie]

Cardinals trade grade

Fitts had just an OK full year for the Sox, with a 5.00 ERA in 10 starts. But he's young and there's potential there, it seems.

Clarke is among the top-five prospects for the Sox, so that's a really good return there.

GRADE: B+


Red Sox trade grade

GRADE: B


-USAToday

A solid move.
Obviously, no one can say for certain how the future will play out.
Clarke is the classic long term high risk / high reward piece.
Fitts is the safer and less aspirational piece - but one who certainly addresses the immediate need for adding rotation arms in 2026.
So, we shall see what happens in 2026.
If the Shoe Fitts as a reasonable rotation piece who can be even slightly better than Mikolas was the past 2 years, it is a good beginning to the STL off-season.
And yes, "Shoe Fitts" has already been selected as my perfect branding for him in 2026, since it perfectly encapsulates why STL had him included in the return.

Fitts should easily be able to top Mikolas and Pallante (plus the departed Fedde) but of course can't replace Gray but no pitcher they bring in this coming season will do that.

I look at him as more of a Mikolas/Pallante replacement and an upgrade.

Agree on Clark, I've said the same high risk/high reward but if the moonshot hits he could be a steal.

[rockondlouie]

Cardinals both get an 'A' in deal for veteran starter
Gray, 36, is heading to Boston, while St. Louis gets a return with both stability and upside

By R.J. Anderson/cbssport.com




Cardinals grade: A

The Cardinals were quiet last winter as they planned out their transition from John Mozeliak's leadership to Chaim Bloom's. Now that Bloom is officially in charge of baseball operations, he's not wasting much time reworking the roster to his liking. The process that started with Tuesday's Gray trade, a deal that netted the Cardinals a readymade Gray replacement and a tantalizing upside play.

[ScotchMIrish]

Cardinals trade grade

Fitts had just an OK full year for the Sox, with a 5.00 ERA in 10 starts. But he's young and there's potential there, it seems.

Clarke is among the top-five prospects for the Sox, so that's a really good return there.

GRADE: B+


Red Sox trade grade

GRADE: B


-USAToday

I posted a thread before about prospect rankings. Where did the Red Sox rank Clarke? He is high strikeout/high walks. Typical of a late inning reliver but not a starter. If Bloom spends the cash saved on a younger ballplayer with years left on his contract when it's a decent trade but I'd reserve judgement on how good Clarke is unless and until he arrives in St Louis.

Clark was the BoSox #5 ranked prospect!

Clarke was ranked #5 by baseball prospectus. The point of my previous thread is we don't know where the Red Sox rank him in their internal rankings which they don't make public.

This is not insignificant. A Cardinals employee went to prison for hacking Houston's internal information.

[rockondlouie]

Cardinals trade grade

Fitts had just an OK full year for the Sox, with a 5.00 ERA in 10 starts. But he's young and there's potential there, it seems.

Clarke is among the top-five prospects for the Sox, so that's a really good return there.

GRADE: B+


Red Sox trade grade

GRADE: B


-USAToday

I posted a thread before about prospect rankings. Where did the Red Sox rank Clarke? He is high strikeout/high walks. Typical of a late inning reliver but not a starter. If Bloom spends the cash saved on a younger ballplayer with years left on his contract when it's a decent trade but I'd reserve judgement on how good Clarke is unless and until he arrives in St Louis.

Clark was the BoSox #5 ranked prospect!

Clarke was ranked #5 by baseball prospectus. The point of my previous thread is we don't know where the Red Sox rank him in their internal rankings which they don't make public.

This is not insignificant. A Cardinals employee went to prison for hacking Houston's internal information.

Gotcha

Okay here you go SM:

Another source, SoxProspects, had him ranked as the No. 8 prospect in their system

[ICCFIM2]

The best thing about this trade is it shows the Cardinals are committed to acquiring prospects and not just offloading salary. Gray wouldn't have required a ton of cash to be kicked in if the goal were just a salary dump.

These are the type of long shot prospects that very likely don't move the needle. No one is a former 1st or 2nd round pick, no one is a big threat to become a future AS or 4-6 fWAR SP. Just JAGs and depth and maybe a distant future bullpen arm in Clarke - but you can always find proven plus bullpen arms for less then $20M.

If Clarke were all that, Boston wouldn't have let him go. They traded him for a reason.

I guess you could say that when they trade Donovan. I guess you could say that when they trade Arenado. And so on... You can spin any conversation to have a negative tilt. There are possibilities here. It's done. We'll see how it goes.

No - if Bloom trades a proven AS Donovan for another proven AS caliber player with years of control left at a position we need talent, there's a very high liklihood we get reasonable value back. Prospects are institutionally overvalued. Proven MLB players, with $ contracts attached are much more attainable.

See the Renteria trade in 1998/1999, heck we traded top prospects for proven talent with years of control. I'm not saying to give up a #1 or #2 prospect for another Renteria type, just a proven AS player already in the Majors. And maybe a lower ranked prospect to sweeten the deal if needed.

Even if the (unlikely) opportunity to trade Donovan for a “proven AS caliber” player presented itself, it would not make sense for the Cardinals. 1) Proven AS players do not get traded pre-arbitration, so whoever they acquire will be making as much or more $$ than Donovan. 2) Said AS player will be only be 2-3 years away from free agency. 3) The Cardinals cannot expect to be seriously competitive within that timeframe, so making such an acquisition would be pointless.

You want prospects because they’ll have 6 years of control in the majors, and three years making near the minimum.

I hear that, but a "proven" player has a much higher liklihood of working out than a "prospect" who might well fail long before reaching the majors. Prospect values historically have been discounted accordingly but of late the prospect hype has taken over and on balance prospects cost too much in talent trade value for their risk adjusted expected value. Sure their is the potential cost savings, but again if they never achieve significant WAR, how is that really helping ?

Sometimes its worth paying the $ for a more sure thing.

Lengthwise, yes you look for someone with 3+ years of control, but we kept Renteria for 6 years After he was already an AS for Florida. And yes he got traded. Find someone at a position worth extending, that you want to build around. That's the opportunity from this Donovan trade. Not just another long shot pitching prospect that might burn out before finishing the long road to even reach MLB.

If the Cardinals were in position to win, your comment is spot on. But, how many players are the Cards away from being a real contender? They need at least 3 higher end starting pitchers and 2 MOTOBs to be a true contender. We know with the payroll constraints, they will not purchase that on the free agent market. Hopefully when the Cards could contend again in 2-3 years, they can trade these prospects for exactly the type of players you are describing. Right now, the Cards 8 50 grade or higher prospects in the system. I would expect after the off season is done, that number will rise to 10 or 11. That gives them plenty of talent that will hopefully develop but also to be used for future talent acquisition. Also, given the Cards are likely to get another top 5 pick, hopefully we get another Doyle/Wetherholdt prospect this summer.

[ScotchMIrish]

Cardinals trade grade

Fitts had just an OK full year for the Sox, with a 5.00 ERA in 10 starts. But he's young and there's potential there, it seems.

Clarke is among the top-five prospects for the Sox, so that's a really good return there.

GRADE: B+


Red Sox trade grade

GRADE: B


-USAToday

I posted a thread before about prospect rankings. Where did the Red Sox rank Clarke? He is high strikeout/high walks. Typical of a late inning reliver but not a starter. If Bloom spends the cash saved on a younger ballplayer with years left on his contract when it's a decent trade but I'd reserve judgement on how good Clarke is unless and until he arrives in St Louis.

Clark was the BoSox #5 ranked prospect!

Clarke was ranked #5 by baseball prospectus. The point of my previous thread is we don't know where the Red Sox rank him in their internal rankings which they don't make public.

This is not insignificant. A Cardinals employee went to prison for hacking Houston's internal information.

Gotcha

Okay here you go SM:

Another source, SoxProspects, had him ranked as the No. 8 prospect in their system

I understand why the use these prospect rankings whenever a trade is made. Regarding Clarke he throws 100 but has very poor control. If he was throwing strikes at that MPH he would likely already be in MLB contending for a Cy Young award. He will need to stop walking so many if he wants to be a starting pitcher in MLB. This will be interesting to follow going forward. Probably ends up being a late inning reliever. How Bloom spends the money saved will determine how good the trade was short term.