The MLB Trading deadline is hours away from closing and after names like Jake Peavy, Matt Garza and Jose Iglesias have moved teams, more deals are likely to come down today, including with Alex Rios possibly to the Pirates and other deals like Edwin Encarnacion, Jose Bautista, Alex Rios, Joe Nathan, Andre Ethier, Carl Crawford and Cliff Lee could go down.
The St. Louis Cardinals have spent most of the 2013 season with the best record in baseball and they are locked in a tight race in the National League central with the Pittsburgh Pirates and with the trade deadline coming up on July 31, there is a good chance the team will make a move to help with a championship run this year.
The Cardinals have a deep bench and a great starting rotation and after losing outfielder Matt Holliday for two weeks with a hamstring injury, the team finally has him back in the lineup to add more power in the top of the order. Holliday had last played on July 12 and went onto the disabled list before the All-Star break with a right hamstring issue and to bring him back, Allen Craig was able to move back to first base and the team sent Brock Peterson back down to the minors.
Holliday is having a solid season while hitting .268 with 13 home runs and nearly 50 RBIs, but that is far below his career batting average, which is over .300 and now he will be back in the lineup full time. The Cardinals have been one of the most consistent teams in the league this year on offense and the team ranks fourth in runs scored and second in batting average. He also is ranked third in on base percentage and 10th in slugging percentage with Yadier Molina looking like an MVP favorite while hitting over .330 this season.
The Cardinals may want to add another arm in the rotation of bullpen as they move along this summer into August and after dealing with injuries to Jake Westbrook and Jaime Garcia, that may be the key to a championship run. The team likely won't add another bat with all the success they have had, but if Holliday's injury lingers, they could try to trade for another outfielder for depth.
