Breaking: The yankees make a last minute move to trade Cardinals star player before MLB deadline.
In the final moments before the MLB trade deadline, Giovanny Gallegos was placed on the St. Louis Cardinals’ roster for assignment. According to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Gallegos chose free agency over a minor league assignment after they acquired pitchers Erick Fedde and Shawn Armstrong.
Gallegos first signed with the New York Yankees, but the St. Louis Cardinals acquired him shortly after. He joined the bullpen in 2018 and quickly established himself as a key member. From 2019 to 2023, he had five seasons in a row with an ERA+ above 100, but this year has seen a sharp decline in his performance.
He has made 21 appearances and has a 65 ERA+ and 6.53 ERA. In July, he gave up just three earned runs, so the Cardinals felt it was time to let him go despite his previous success. After the MLB trade deadline, a long-lead reliever with postseason experience will be highly sought-after in free agency.
The Cardinals are taking a chance on Gallegos being taken by one of their rivals for the National League Wild Card. By the deadline, relievers were going for very high prices. Lefty reliever Tanner Scott was acquired by the San Diego Padres for three top-10 prospects, and it took the Yankees two prospects to acquire Mark Leiter Jr. from the Cubs.
There are undoubtedly teams that could acquire Gallegos from the Cardinals but did not acquire the required bullpen help at the deadline. Which clubs ought to gamble on him in the final stretch?
Josh Hader is a reliever for the Houston Astros, and his deal is the most costly in team history. Despite the large salary, he has not been the elite closer he was in Milwaukee. They might try to strengthen their bullpen by taking a cheap bet on Gallegos. They traded for Caleb Ferguson, a slightly better player than Gallegos had with the Cardinals—who was obtained from the Yankees. In the playoffs, the combination might gobble up crucial innings.
