“You can’t always get what you want. You can’t always get what you want. You can’t always get what you want. But if you try sometimes you might find, you get what you need.”
This popular Rolling Stones song may just sum up the Cardinals activity at the trading deadline.
Just a few days ago, the Cardinals were listed as heavy contenders for Roy Oswalt and in a matter of days jumped to the top of the list as a possible landing spot for the young right hander.
Oswalt said just a day after that he would love a trade to the Cardinals as it would be closer to his Mississippi home, and he would even be willing to rework his $16 million option for next year in order to stay with the club.
It seemed that the Cardinals were seemingly inches away from acquiring another ace to bolster an already stellar rotation that has struggled a little bit on the back end with starters Kyle Lohse and Brad Penny out since May.
However, today the Cardinals are reportedly bowing out of the Roy Oswalt sweepstakes. The Cardinals, along with the Dodgers and Phillies, had been on the phones extensively with the Astros front office trying to match prospect names.
Yet there are still numerous complications in sending Oswalt to St. Louis:
1) Astros would be unlikely to trade ace of their staff within the division2) Despite Oswalt’s big contract, Astros are asking a lot in return3) The Cardinals farm system is pretty thin, and they don’t want to part with top prospect Shelby Miller or breakout rookie Jon Jay.
The Astros are asking for a major-league ready bat along with multiple top prospects, which is an asking price that is most likely too steep for the Redbirds.
Yet, if the Cardinals try, they may get what they need: health.
The Cards certainly have the talent to win the NL Central, but the question remains as to how far they can go in the playoffs. With a healthy return of Brad Penny and Kyle Lohse, they may indeed not get what they want in Oswalt, but instead get better with the return of two starting pitchers.
Written by:
