The St. Louis Cardinals are in a weird spot. They weren’t supposed to be this good this year. After a quiet offseason and a roster that looked like it was still in rebuild mode, they’ve hung around the NL Central race longer than most expected. But here’s the thing: their rotation is held together with duct tape and good intentions.
Michael McGreevy and Andre Pallante have been fine. Everyone else has been shaky at best. Miles Mikolas has a 4.50 ERA. Kyle Gibson is sitting at 4.30. Steven Matz can’t stay healthy. The Cardinals need help, and they probably aren’t going to trade their top prospects to get it.
That’s where Zac Gallen comes in.
The Numbers Are Ugly. The Track Record Isn’t.
Gallen has a 6.10 ERA this season. That’s not a typo. The guy who finished top-five in Cy Young voting two years ago has been getting shelled. Sixteen starts, and he’s been rocked in most of them. The Diamondbacks are hovering around .500, which means they might listen to offers. And according to Jim Bowden of The Athletic, Gallen is one of those under-the-radar names who could get traded before the deadline.
So why would the Cardinals want a pitcher with an ERA north of six?
Because buying low on a former All-Star is exactly the kind of move a team like this makes. Gallen was an All-Star in 2023. He has a career 3.44 ERA. He knows how to pitch in big games. Right now he’s in a funk, but there’s no structural reason to believe he’s cooked. A change of scenery could do what it’s done for a dozen other guys before him.
The Cardinals aren’t in a position to trade for a Tarik Skubal or a Garrett Crochet. Those guys will cost multiple top-100 prospects. Gallen would come cheaper. Maybe a couple of secondary prospects and a lottery ticket. The risk is real, but the upside is obvious.
What Gallen Would Bring
Veteran presence. Playoff experience. A guy who’s been in the grinder and come out the other side. The Cardinals rotation needs a stabilizer, not a savior. Gallen could be that guy.
And maybe this is just a bad half. Pitchers have them. Gerrit Cole had an ERA over 4.00 in 2017 and 2021. Justin Verlander had a 4.84 in 2022 and then won the Cy Young in 2023. Not saying Gallen is those guys, but the principle holds. Sometimes a good pitcher just has a few months where nothing goes right, and then it clicks.
If the Diamondbacks are willing to talk, the Cardinals should at least pick up the phone. They don’t have much to lose. And if Gallen figures it out, they’ll look like geniuses.
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