Locked On Cardinals - Daily Podcast On The St. Louis Cardinals - BLOCKBUSTER MOVE?: St. Louis Cardinals Could EYE Robbie Ray to STRENGTHEN Playoff Rotation

Starting point is 00:00:00 Would a former Sight Young Award winning left-hander be the ad that Cardinals need to boost them into the playoffs? This is Locked-on Cardinals. You are Locked-on Cardinals. Your daily St. Louis Cardinals podcast, part of the Locked-on Podcast Network, your team every day. Hey there, Cardinals fans. I'm Jady Hafford, and today's episode is brought to you by O-Doo. Great organizations win because operations matter. And that's why you should get O-Doo. Try it for free today to odoo.com slash locked on. That's O'DOO.com slash lockdown. On today's show,

Starting point is 00:00:38 we got a big win for the boys by the boys. I should say not for him, but by the boys on Wednesday over the Brewers. So we got to talk about that. Michael McGrievey was excellent. The offense beat one of the brewers top arms. We had the debut of Luis Gastilum, finally. And we also found out today that Jordan Walker has now got an added duty for the All-Star game. But I want to start today with an article that got dropped by ESPN's Jeff Passen, went through all of the contending teams and pointed out their biggest weaknesses, came up with players who would be considered what he wrote as like the best match to help with said weakness. And then a player who would be like the dream match to help with that weakness. And here's what he had to say about the Cardinals who were currently 48 and 43.

Starting point is 00:01:27 either two games back in the NL Wild Card. After winning on Wednesday, he says St. Louis has faded in recent weeks. And even if the Cardinals do get hot again and jump back into position to secure a playoff spot, there's unlikely to be a big move that titillates fans, which is a great word, by the way, Jeff has an excellent job. And he says that's to be expected. You know, teams don't hire Heim Bloom to run baseball operations and expect him to deviate from a plan that is in its early stages of execution.

Starting point is 00:02:00 We have talked about this on a number of occasions. Like, I still believe that the Cardinals should be sellers. I don't think this team is good enough to win a world championship, which is the ultimate goal. Can they sneak into the playoffs, maybe? But I believe that selling is probably the right thing to do for the organization at this point. He continues, saying at the same time, success can persuade front offices to act out of character and these cardinals have made a good case. They've reengaged a fan base that had grown

Starting point is 00:02:31 weary. They still look a little bit weary. Hasn't been the big crowds that I thought might be out there for the series against Milwaukee. They've developed an enviable core of J.J. Weatherholt, Jordan Walker, Yvonne Herrera and Alec Berluson. The rotation, however, remains a real question mark and is putting a huge onus on a bullpen that might just tie around by the time September rolls around. Again, these are things that we've talked about here at Lockdown Cardinals that I've pointed out before on the show. The Cardinals don't overuse their rotation. They don't extend their starters so that they can keep them healthy and they do it at the expense of their bullpen, which try as they may, just isn't equipped to handle all of that workload and do it at a

Starting point is 00:03:18 successful rate that is playoff worthy, in my opinion. Okay. If you feel different, let me know in the comments section. But most of us, I think, agree that, you know, the arms they got that in there in the bullpen. They're just not good enough. And it's something they'll have to work on. And it's part of this whole rebuilding thing. But Jeff suggests that the best match to help out the rotation is to go with former Sye Young Award winner and current San Francisco Giants left hander Robbie Ray.

Starting point is 00:03:47 And Ray won his Cy Young with the Blue Jays back in 2021. So it's been a bit since we've seen. him pitch at that level. He's dealt with injuries that limited him to just eight starts in the big leagues between 2023 and 24. But he rebounded nicely when he got to San Francisco in 2025, where he was an all-star going 11 and 8 with a 3.65 BRA. He only walked 73 hitters in 182 and a third innings, which is something that, you know, is endearing to me because I freaking hate the walks and we see what happens when Cardinals pitchers walk people. They end up scoring and they end up losing because of it. So bringing in somebody who may not be a big swing and miss guy

Starting point is 00:04:27 anymore at this stage of his career, but he's not putting free guys on either. And this season, he's actually statistically, you know, he's pitching better in ways. He's eight and six, 3.45 ERA. The ERA plus is at 116, which is the highest it's been since his Cy Young winning season in 2021. Now pass, it continues talking about Ray saying as good as Ray has been lately, the Cardinals might instead opt for a less costly option who can gobble innings and help save the pen. Now, Robbie Ray is making $25 million this year. It's the final season of the five-year, $115 million deal that he signed with the Mariners, and he will be a free agent after the season.

Starting point is 00:05:06 Now, this sounds like a very cardinals move to me. At least in the John Mosaic years, this screams Cardinals to go after somebody like this. depending on what the Giants would want in return, what that cost could be. I could see this is a real avenue. This is a guy that makes sense. But then you hear, you know, pass and say, well, maybe a less costly option.

Starting point is 00:05:29 I don't know how much is left of the $25 million. They would have to pay for the rest of the season. I don't know. The Cardinals don't have a lot of money on the books right now. They're paying a lot of other players to play for other teams right now, which, you know, is not a spy that you ever want to be in. But it's part of, you know, redoing this whole thing. and getting them pointed in the right direction,

Starting point is 00:05:48 which I think they've done. And if they continue to hang around and be a part of this wild card conversation, I think that would be great. I would love to add another left-hander to this team, you know? But the other name that he brings up, and he does it and he says, this is the dream match,

Starting point is 00:06:06 is Seattle starter Logan Gilbert. And hold on, before you get excited about that, sipping down now, because Passon says, look, the Maritors have zero intention to moving Gilbert. He's been their best starter. But with free agency backinging after the 27th season and Kate Anderson, Big League Ready and Ryan Sloan, not far behind, it's worth bookmarking his name as a potential trade candidate going forward, particularly for a team like St. Louis that's bounded about more resources to winning next year. So perhaps that is something that in the off season, hey, we'll consider that. You know, the Mariners are currently in first place, the AL West. We're not about to trade Logan Gilbert. Not going to happen during this season. Wouldn't make any sense. But we know that the Cardinals in Seattle had a lot of communication this off season. You know, Cardinals' eyes were all over Seattle's roster and their farm system

Starting point is 00:06:57 when they were trying to work out the Brendan Donovan deal. So there's still a good relationship there as far as I know, although Donnie has been a bit of a bus for them due to injuries this year. He hasn't even played since May 14th. But the name Robbie Ray definitely intriguing. I like that. I'd be on board with that depending on the call. of what you would have to trade over to San Francisco. Again, it would be just a rental, so he can't cost too much. There's no long-term commitment after this season gives you a different look outside of Libby because you don't have another left-handed starter on the team unless you're bringing up a Quinn Matthews.

Starting point is 00:07:36 Your thoughts on this as a possibility in the comments below. Yay or nay on Robbie Ray, again, considering what it might cost you. Like, what if you had to give up, gosh, what would they need? What would they need? Maybe like, do they need a catcher? Cardinals are deep in catching. Would you give up a Jimmy Crooks for something like this for just a rental?

Starting point is 00:07:59 I certainly wouldn't give up like a burn all by any means. I wouldn't do that. But I don't know. There's things to think about. There's other guys in the minor leagues that you could think about and give up. Maybe we can do that in a different segment or a different, you know, different show altogether. We can break that down a little bit more. But leave your comments in the in the comments section down below.

Starting point is 00:08:21 Let me know what it is that you think it would be worthy to give up to get somebody like a Robbie Ray. And if that's something that you're interested in. So let's get into last night's win next. We'll talk about that stuff coming up on Locked on Cardinals. Support for today's episode comes from Indeed Sponsored Jobs when workplace chaos hits and you need the right hire. Indeed, sponsored jobs helps connect employers with candidates who match specific needs like your skills and certifications and location. So less time gets spent, searching,

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Starting point is 00:09:46 Go to Indeed.com slash podcast right now and support our show by saying you heard about Indeed on Locked on Cardinals. Indeed.com slash podcast terms and conditions apply need to hire. This is a job for Indeed. Sponsored jobs. Have you ever noticed how the second you search for something online ads for that exact same thing that kind of start following you everywhere you go? Yeah, maybe you're traveling, trying to access a website, streaming a game maybe, watching content you normally use. at home. And suddenly, you're hit with that message. This content isn't available in your region. B. B.B.B. That's why more and more people are turning to Proton VPN. Proton VPN is a secure VPN service. It's designed for people who want more privacy, more security, more control over how they experience the internet. Now, it helps keep your online activity private, which is great. It protects your data.

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Starting point is 00:11:54 Thanks for making Locked on Cardinals, your first listen of the day. And thank you for making the Lockdown Podcast Network, your number one sports podcast network, man. We are killing it in the ratings. And we appreciate you guys for being here each and every day and taking time out to help us with that. So I hope you enjoy the content. Let's roll into last night's victory.

Starting point is 00:12:13 A good one of Michael McGreevy. The guy has just been a steady ship, hasn't he? Like, Michael McGreevy, you know, it's been an up and down season for the Cardinal. right, you know, a lot more ups than down so far this year, which has been great. And although the wind total doesn't suggest that Michael McGreevy has been that steady ship, I think we can all agree that when he's on the mound, we feel like we have a pretty good shot at winning. Like I feel pretty confident what Michael McGreevy is my starter.

Starting point is 00:12:39 Andre Palante out of nowhere has given us those vines this year. Dustin May for the most part has made you feel that way. Cal Leahy up and down for most of the year, but recently has stepped his game up. Libby still kind of 50, 50, maybe 40, 60 at best. But McGreevy picked up just his fourth win of the season last night. He's only got four, which is crazy. Toss six in a third inning, allowed just one run on five hits. He struck out six against this Brewer's team who had just blasted the Cardinals in game two of that doubleheader on Tuesday, 10 to 2.

Starting point is 00:13:11 It was also his 26th birthday. And what better way to celebrate than to not only pitch well, but get the win. And following the win, he's now four and six. on the year, which seems crazy considering he possesses a 3.01 ERA, 16th best in the league, 10th best in the national week. Tells you what kind of run support Michael McGreevy's been getting. And this was a wild factoid after the game. There was a lot of very interesting birthday facts that started popping up.

Starting point is 00:13:40 So Cardinal starters have now won 13 straight games when taking the mound on their birthdays. The streak dates back to September 25th of 08 when Joel Piniero, defeat. defeated the D-backs 12 to 3 on his 30th birthday, who had a Joel Pinheiro mentioned on their bingo card for it today. If you did, good for you. You're the winner. In fact, the Cardinals, their last starter to win on his birthday, was Kwongyang Kim, better known as KK,

Starting point is 00:14:10 because it's way easier to say, against the Cubs in July of 2021, the 13-game birthday-winning streak, longest in Major League history. No other team has had a streak longer than eight games. games. And the last time a Cardinal starter actually lost a game on his birthday was in 2006. Jeff Weaver lost. Since 1994, the Cardinals are now 17 and 1 in games where the starting pitcher throws on his birthday. That's crazy stuff right. And I don't even know how people find this stuff. It's nutty. But very cool. Very cool factoids coming from a lot of the beat

Starting point is 00:14:48 reporters and stuff. So shout out to all of you for that stuff. Bumpy start to the game for McGreevy right out of the gate. He had to pitch around that basis loaded situation in the first inning. But then he locks in, rattles off 15 straight outs between the second and the seventh, which included that one, which at first when it happened, I was like, oh crap, 103 mile per hour, comeback line drive. I believe I was Cooper Pratt who hit that one. But it caught him like in the torso, but kind of in the in the glove area too. But, you know, he gave us that tongue and the devil horns to signal that, hey, I'm good, stayed in the game until that seventh inning when the Brewers got the one out, double by Garrett Mitchell, who's becoming a real pain in the arse.

Starting point is 00:15:29 Like, I'm sick of Garrett Mitchell, man. I don't want to see that dude anymore. He's becoming that annoying guy for the Brewers, right? And then their rookie, Luis Lara, singles to make it first and third with one out. So Ali goes to the ballpen and he goes to the newest member of the team. Finally, we get to see rookie right-handed reliever Luis. Gastilum, our long-haired hero with that wicked change up, made his MLB debut. And all the Brewers, you know, they got the sack fly off of them, which scored a run. And then they also got

Starting point is 00:15:58 a double off of them. But he gets Vaughn to tap out weekly and, you know, kept that seventh inning from getting out of control. And that's been the inning that's been killing the Cardinals in the series as we went over in our last show. So to hold them to one in that inning felt like a victory right there. Offensively, the birds took advantage of that sun-assisted double in the first inning by Mason Wynn when it hit Laura. Like he jumped, and I guess he didn't see it, hit him in the face and came down. And like, he had an interesting night out in right field. The son was giving him some issues. Later on, he makes a couple of nice catches. Rookie, just another, another rookie with a ton of speed for this Brewer's team. So he's going to be somebody, we got to keep an eye on. But helps us out there. Jordan Walker doubles.

Starting point is 00:16:46 Alex Burleson doubles. Cardinals take that two to nothing lead against Kyle Harrison, who coming into the game was 8-1. He'd only lost one game so far this season. Jose from Mean tags him in the fourth inning for a solo blast. And then shockingly, Harrison was done after that, trailing three to nothing. We find out later that he's dealing with some elbow soreness on the outside of the elbow apparently. So that's something that the Brewers probably took into consideration and why he didn't go any longer than that because it's not like his pitch count was crazy. And it wasn't like the cartels were just mashing him,

Starting point is 00:17:18 but they did take the lead three to nothing against him. Alec Berluson with the exclamation point in this one in the sixth inning, that monster two-run shot to right field off another lefty and a good one to boot. Jared Kenning, 443 feet. Second farthest home run hit at Bush Stadium this year behind, I don't hate me for this, but these are just the stats behind PCA. And then that Tommy Troy guy from the Diamondbacks, they each hit one that went 444 feet.

Starting point is 00:17:46 still, I still see that PCA home run in my nightmares because I was in right field when it happened. It zipped over my head into the tarps off section. And since that point, PCA has been on an absolute tear, arguably the best hitter in the league right now since that moment. So what the hell did we do to set him off? It's hard fault. I blame us. All in all, though, what a solid bounce back victory for the team that, you know, had to suffer through a pretty miserable loss in game too. and had lost three games previously

Starting point is 00:18:17 where they either held the lead or were tied late and then couldn't close it out. And, you know, they lose to the Cubbies and then they lose to the Brewers by one run in the first two games before getting beat up on in game two. So I love the resiliency and you should too. Like be proud of these young guys that they're able to just turn the page and just move on

Starting point is 00:18:40 because Tuesday was pretty miserable to blow that game on and then to get blown out in game two, and then to come back and kind of put it on the brewers a little bit. That was awesome to see. Up next, something else that is awesome to see. Jordan Walker is going to be in the home run derby. I am super stoked about that. We're going to talk about him in just a bit on Locked on Cardinals.

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Starting point is 00:19:40 It's about having everyone working toward the same goal. And that's true in sports, just like it is in business. The Cardinals right now are in a bit of a rebrand. mode, right? But because everyone's pulling in the right direction, it's working out better than anybody thought it actually might work out. It was a coordinated effort across the entire organization from ownership to management to the players. And it's succeeding. It is working. And it's happening at the big league level, just like it is down in the minors right now. It's working beautifully. So great organizations win because operations matter. And that's why you should

Starting point is 00:20:17 get Odo. Try for free today. at ODOO.com slash locked on. That's spelled O'DOO.com slash locked on. Thanks again for making Locked on Cardinals, your first listen of the day and making Lockdown, the number one sports podcast network. The Cardinals have three representatives going to the All-Star game as of right now.

Starting point is 00:20:39 Things can change, obviously. Jordan Walker, Riley O'Brien, manager, Ali Marmal, there are arguments for Burley and JJ Weatherhole, but it is what it is. You know, no need to get your panties in a bunch about it. We don't have to get worked up about this. It's an exhibition. And frankly, some of these guys,

Starting point is 00:20:53 could use the extra days off. So it's, it's okay. It'd be nice to be acknowledged, but at the same time, I get it. And it's okay. But after Jordan and Riley got named his alternates, you don't always know how much action they're actually going to see, you know, we don't know if Riley O'Brien's even going to get. How many of bats is Jordan Walker going to get? We're not there to watch him hang out in right field, are we? We want to see him hit. And now we're going to see Jordan Walker hit because he has thrown his bat into the home run derby ring. And I am pumped about it. He's got to join Jack Clark, who did it back in 1985, Ray Langford in 1997, Mark McGuire in 89, or 9899, Jim Edmonds did it in 2003, O'3, O'Hawls did it in a bunch of years,

Starting point is 00:21:39 03, 07, 2009. 2020, 2022, we did it. Remember how cool that was? Matt Holiday did it in 2010 and 2011 and Carlos Beltron in 2012. Those are all former Cardinals, members of the team that competed. No Cardinal has actually ever won the home run derby. Albert came the closest, finished as a runner up to Garrett Anderson of all people back in 2003. And I know that we worry about guys screwing up their swings when they compete in the home run derby. We've heard about it before where, oh, competing in the derby, it wears them out and it screws up their swing and they're going to start popping it up and stuff like that. I don't know how much that really affects it.

Starting point is 00:22:21 I don't. Jordan Walker's 24 years old. I think he's got the energy to do this. And if he didn't want to do it, he wouldn't. And I'm excited to see it. I mean, the guy is going to make the most of his first All-Star game. He should have been a starter. Like, you know, just stat-wise, you're like, you deserve to be a starter.

Starting point is 00:22:41 But he's not. He's an alternate. And now he's going to be on the big stage for the home run derby. So we get a chance to watch him in action and root him on making the most of this experience. He's having some fun. That's what the derby is about through 89 games this year, 294, 355, 534 slash line, 21 Dinger, 70 river rivis, which leads all of the major leagues. Got an 889 OPS.

Starting point is 00:23:07 He's been awesome. Got one of the fastest bats in the league, 79.1 mile per hour average bat speed. 85.7% fast swing rate. Only Junior Caminara, who is also participating in the derby, has better metrics in either of those categories and is 94.2 mile per hour average exit velocity tied for fifth highest among qualified hitters. These are the guys we want to see in the home run derby,

Starting point is 00:23:30 and I'm excited for it. The derby's going to be held on Monday at Philadelphia Citizens Bank Park will air live at 8 p.m. Eastern on Netflix, so 7 o'clock St. Louis time. Walker joins Caminero, as I mentioned. Yankees first baseman, Ben Rice, another big slugger, which will be fun to watch. Royals outfielder, Jack Caglione.

Starting point is 00:23:51 He's another guy that just mashes, like, when he got drafted, you knew that dude was going to be in a derby one day. The guy is a specimen. And then Red Sox's first baseman and former Cardo Wilson Contreras, also supposed to be in the home run derby as well. So that's your field thus far. I think they still have to announce a few more names here. But I love, I'm excited for that.

Starting point is 00:24:10 I think it's going to be fun. Andre Palante gets the call tonight. He'll be on the mound against Logan Henderson for the Brewers. Now, if the Cardinals can win this one, yes, they lose the series. That's already said and done. But they would lose the series three to two, which sounds a lot better than four to one. And in this final 14 game stretch, before the break, they're now with the win on Wednesday, they're now five and five.

Starting point is 00:24:34 And I said before that if they could get through this 14 game stretch against the Braves, the Cubs, Brewers, Braves again, if they can come back and get through it 500 or better, I think that has to be deemed a success, considering how crazy the schedule is, how good your opponents are, and the timing of it all, because it's at the back end of the first half of the season

Starting point is 00:24:58 where a lot of teams are crawling towards the finish line, man, they're exhausted. And I think if they're able to pull this off, get a win tonight, and then they can take two or three against the bread. That would be phenomenal. I would be super excited about that. But one game at a time,

Starting point is 00:25:16 got to get the W tonight and hopefully feed off the momentum that they got by getting the win on Wednesday. Thanks for making Lockedong Cardinals, your first listen of the day. Also, be sure to give us follow on X at L.O. underscore Cardinals, TikTok, Instagram, and Lockton Cardinals. Like to subscribe on YouTube, making that push for

Starting point is 00:25:31 15,000 subscribers. Need your help to get there. Every day, our club is still available. Make sure you check that out. Link is in the show notes. For your second listen, all night. Locked on MLBee game night every game every night until the World Series Champion is crowned. Get local analysis on a national scale. You can find MLB game night on lockdown. MLB on YouTube or wherever you listen to your podcast. You're the best fans in baseball for a reason. And I will see you next time on Lockdown Cargless.

Locked On Cardinals - Daily Podcast On The St. Louis Cardinals - BLOCKBUSTER MOVE?: St. Louis Cardinals Could EYE Robbie Ray to STRENGTHEN Playoff Rotation

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