DENVER 鈥 Whatever trade deadline plans Cardinals executive John Mozeliak signaled Monday in the dugout by saying recent results have him exploring the benefits of being a seller, such sentiments draw interest but not much volume in the current clubhouse, members said.
One veteran referred to it as 鈥渟uper-noise.鈥
As the July 31 trade deadline nears and the Cardinals find themselves fielding offers for players on expiring contracts for the second time in three years, the feeling in the clubhouse is different than the losing season of 2023 and curiosity of acquisition in 2024, several players said. Willson Contreras said he鈥檚 shut the door completely to any trade deadline chatter.
鈥淚鈥檓 not looking to the trade deadline,鈥 he said late Monday night. 鈥淚鈥檓 just focused on getting the team right 鈥 doing the small things. Whatever (Mozeliak) is going to do, he鈥檚 going to do. We鈥檙e not focusing on that. That鈥檚 super-noise. If he鈥檚 going to sell, he鈥檚 going to sell. If he鈥檚 going to acquire, he鈥檚 going to acquire. The only thing we can control is what we do here inside. The way we go through our business 鈥 on and off the field 鈥 and then we play the game.
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鈥淥ur mentality, our mindset right now is focusing in the clubhouse, is focusing here,鈥 Contreras continued. 鈥淲hatever is going to happen on the trade deadline is going to happen. Our mindset is to make adjustments day in and day out and play our best baseball so the good things happen.鈥
The Cardinals鈥 victory Monday night stemmed a three-game losing stream coming out of the break, but recent road troubles 鈥 they entered Tuesday 2-8 in their past 10 鈥 have coincided with hot streaks by division rivals. Milwaukee woke up Tuesday on an 11-game winning streak and boasting the best record in baseball at 60-40. The Reds have gone 6-4 in their past 10, and that鈥檚 been enough to tie the Cardinals for third place, at 52-49 in the National League Central.
The number of teams ahead of the Cardinals in the division and wild-card standings has change the trade deadline 鈥渆quation,鈥 president of baseball operations Mozeliak said Monday at Coors Field. And the volume of calls he鈥檚 received from other teams increased after the series sweep in Arizona.
The volume of chatter in the clubhouse has been there but not pervasive.
鈥淚 feel like this has been the least distracted when it comes to that,鈥 manager Oliver Marmol said. 鈥淭hey鈥檙e really just focused on what鈥檚 next 鈥 which is tonight鈥檚 game. There has been very little assumptions or conversations. It鈥檚 actually hasn鈥檛 been a distraction at all. A lot of the clubhouse conversations have been around getting on a run and taking care of what we can take care of. Not so much trying to play GM and guessing as to what鈥檚 next.鈥
Three of the Cardinals relievers 鈥 All-Star closer Ryan Helsley, setup man Phil Maton and swingman lefty Steven Matz 鈥 are all free agents at season鈥檚 end and have drawn varying degrees of interest from other teams.
鈥淚 would love to stay here long-term, but I also understand teams have to look at the return,鈥 Helsley said. 鈥淵ou see both sides of it as a fan of the game and also as a player. If we traded someone and we get the return that helps the organization down the road or we can get someone to make a deeper push this year. It鈥檚 hard to make the postseason every year, so you want that chance.鈥
Mozeliak said he planned to talk with Nolan Arenado in the coming days about what his wishes are at the deadline and if he would like the team to explore trades. Arenado has a no-trade clause that he has already exercised in the past year to block a trade to Houston. Contreras along with starters Sonny Gray and Miles Mikolas also have no-trade clauses. Mozeliak said he would talk to the others as well but did not expect any change in their preferences to stay with the Cardinals though 鈥渋t鈥檚 worth a conversation.鈥
Regarding Arenado specifically, Mozeliak said: 鈥淩ight now, I would say we envision him being a part鈥 of the team after the deadline.
This time of year, Marmol meets individually with players and his coaches keep in conversation with players to be available for questions or concerns about the trade deadline. Marmol added that with the veterans and their no-trade clauses he talks with them 鈥渨hen the time is right鈥 for a candid exchange. It鈥檚 those talks, he said, that keep trade talks from becoming too much the talk of the clubhouse.
鈥淚t hasn鈥檛 been a distraction,鈥 Marmol said, 鈥渂ecause guys feel communicated to.鈥
Burleson back from bruised foot
Alec Burleson left Monday night鈥檚 6-2 victory after fouling a pitch off the top of his right foot and bruising it so deeply that it was difficult to run or plant his foot.
X-rays taken at Coors Field did not illuminate any fractures, and Burleson said late Monday night that he had been diagnosed with a bruised foot.
But Burleson was back in the lineup Tuesday.
Although not initially in the Cardinals鈥 starting nine, Burleson tested his swing and running before the evening game and felt comfortable and strong enough to play. The pain subsided with the help of ice that night, and by Tuesday afternoon, the soreness had calmed so that he could test his swing before the game.
Burleson called the overnight plan 鈥減ound it with treatment.鈥
Cardinals spend record sum on draft
The Cardinals finalized agreements with all of their draft picks this past week, and by the end of the signing period, they committed a club record amount in bonuses to players drafted. The Cardinals recently announced deals with second-round pick Ryan Mitchell, a prep outfielder out of Tennessee, and college pitchers Cade Crossland and Ethan Young. All three received above slot bonuses as the Cardinals maneuvered their spending strategically to lure a player like Mitchell away from a commitment to Georgia Tech.
The Cardinals committed $14,106,700 to their 11 picks from the top 10 rounds, according to Post-Dispatch research and reports from Baseball America and . That comes in just under their purse of $14,238,300.
But several of the Cardinals鈥 picks after the 10th round received bonuses greater than $150,000, and the overage counts against the cap. For example, Baseball America reported Kansas right-hander Alex Breckheimer, the Cardinals鈥 16th-round pick, received a bonus of $200,000 to bring his 98 mph fastball and 30% swing-and-miss rate to pro ball.
