Cleveland Guardians starting pitcher Shane Bieber. MLB Rumors, Cardinals, Mets, Phillies, Cubs (David Richard-USA TODAY Sports)
The Chicago Cubs, St. Louis Cardinals, New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies can be fixed, but it won’t be easy.
MLB Rumors: Cardinals should trade for Shane Bieber
The common take on Shane Bieber is simple — the Cleveland Guardians don’t view him as an ace-level talent, and neither do many front office executives around baseball. This makes one of the best pitchers in the American League the last few years — statistically at least — available for an affordable asking price.
Per Zack Meisel of The Athletic, the Guardians primary needs are on offense, so they don’t mind dealing Bieber considering the young pitching already on their roster and coming up through the minor-league ranks:
“The Guardians’ primary needs are glaring. They rank at or near the bottom of the league in most offensive categories. Any young hitter with the ability to rack up extra-base hits would be welcome. The two logical avenues to acquiring such a player: package prospects or trade Bieber. It might even behoove the Guardians to do both.
As is customary, the Guardians boast plenty of starting pitching depth, with rookies Logan Allen and Tanner Bibee asserting themselves as reliable, big-league options. Triston McKenzie and Aaron Civale returned from the injured list last weekend. Gavin Williams, a consensus top-50 prospect, has fared well in seven starts for Triple-A Columbus.”
Still, a front-office executive quoted by Ken Rosenthal suggested the Guardians won’t find a thriving market for Bieber, at least not at their current asking price. The Cardinals, while one of the worst teams in the National League as of this writing, aren’t in a position to rebuild. If they’re smart, they will retool around a pitcher like Bieber, who would immediately become one of the top two pitchers on their staff.
St. Louis has the young, polished hitters the Guardians are looking for, specifically in their outfield with Tyler O’Neill and Dylan Carlson.