The Trade Deadline has come and gone and our mailbag is overflowing. For today’s Off Day Episode, we just answer your questions. We touch on everything from the minor league system to the major league outfield to what the rotation will look like next year.

As always, thanks to everyone who asked questions @cardinalsoffday on Twitter. You can send in questions anytime - we’ll always try to get to them when we next record.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cardinalsoffday.substack.com

Our guiding principle here at Cardinals Off Day is to only drop new episodes on off days, but we made an exception for the Trade Deadline. Thanks to everyone who joined us live for this Twitter Spaces live recording.

We discuss the Cardinals acquisitions of Jose Quintana and Jordan Montgomery, what did and didn’t happen in the Juan Soto deal and more.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cardinalsoffday.substack.com

We hope you listen to this episode early. With the Trade Deadline less than 48 hours away, this latest news and speculation could lose its timeliness in a hurry.

We start by recapping the Edmundo Sosa trade and what it likely means for the middle infield to have Paul DeJong back on the major league roster.

Then we talk about the Luis Castillo deal, what it tells us about the Seller’s Market, and which remaining starting pitchers that have been linked with the Cardinals we think are realistic fits.

Finally, we breakdown the latest in the Juan Soto saga, including Jim Bowden’s comment that the Cardinals are not only among the final three teams in the running, but that they are offering the most major league talent.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cardinalsoffday.substack.com

The Trade Deadline approaches. We discuss Jeff Jones report that the Cardinals and Nationals have discussed a Juan Soto trade structured around Nolan Gorman and more, potentially with or without Patrick Corbin included.

Then we look at other players who may be available and of interest to the Cardinals, particularly pitchers.

Who will the Cardinals have to give up to make a deal? We take turns arguing for and against trading each of the Cardinals top trade chips.

We answer a question about extending outfielders and jointly recommend dearpandemic.org for anyone honestly looking for good information about Covid-19 or the vaccines.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cardinalsoffday.substack.com

We’d like to think we have many friends here at the Cardinals Off Day podcast, but no friend of the pod has joined us more frequently than Kyle Reiss - and we’re glad to have him back.

With the 2022 MLB Draft just concluded, Kyle joins us to discuss who the Cardinals selected and what that might say about their priorities, what they’re looking to develop in their pitching lab and more.

We then discuss the seven (seven!) Cardinals featured in the latest update of the Baseball America Top 100.

Finally, we discuss the prospects who have made the big leagues this season. What do we think of the production from Matthew Liberatore, Zach Thompson, Nolan Gorman and Brendan Donovan so far, and where do we see it going from here?

You can (and should) follow Kyle at: @kyler416, where he GIFs the nightly highlights from the Cardinals minor league affiliates, and is just generally a delightful presence in your timeline. You should also catch his live Prospects After Dark and Prospect Macarena shows and read his work at Birds on the Black.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cardinalsoffday.substack.com

The All-Star Break is the longest off-day of the season, so we’re unleashing a super-sized episode.

We begin by recapping the comments Cardinals President of Baseball Operations John Mozeliak made over the weekend on Blogger/Podcaster Day at the ballpark. He touched on a wide range of topics, from managing people, to how the manager seeks input from the front office, what happened to the study of wind currents and more.

Next, we take a look at the Cardinals 2022 MLB Draft, which is still underway, but started with a surprising emphasis on funky, left-handed college pitchers.

We then look back at our preseason predictions and evaluate how accurate they were thus far, as well as how the rest of the season looks to turn out.

After that we answer your questions, many of which were about trades the team might make before the deadline.

Ben Humphrey’s Off Day Recommendation is “The Bear” on Hulu. Ben Godar recommends “The Church of Baseball” by Ron Shelton.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cardinalsoffday.substack.com

Since our last off day, Jack Flaherty has returned to the disabled list, and while Steven Matz is now making rehab starts, his return to the majors is still a ways off. So… will the Cardinals make a trade to bolster the rotation?

We discuss that in detail, plus answer your questions.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cardinalsoffday.substack.com

We want to be honest with you: We recorded this episode before the Mikolas near no-no and Jack Flaherty’s start. But to give you our take on these developments: No-hitters and the return of a staff ace are both good.

Now that we’ve got that out of the way, we hope you’ll enjoy this episode:

Main Topics11:35-Pitch Value vs. ERA - A tale of Woodford, Hudson and how the Cardinals operate-Starting Pitching: With Matz as a Question Mark, what will they do to cover innings?-What do you do with Paul DeJong?

Listener Questions45:11

Wrapping Up1:04:32-What are we watching for?-Off Day recommendations

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cardinalsoffday.substack.com

After an unusual 5-game series in Chicago, the Cardinals get an off-day with their two corner outfielders expected to return to the team soon. We discuss how the return of O’Neill and Carlson might shake up the lineup and playing time. Then we talk pitching and how this Cardinals team will get the innings it needs from the arms it has available.

We answer listener questions, then wrap up with what we’ll be watching for and off-day recommendations.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cardinalsoffday.substack.com

On our last episode, we talked about the team being on the cusp of #Gormania, but concerns about his strikeouts and defense still kept the top prospect down on the farm. Now Nolan Gorman is a St. Louis Cardinal… and he brought his friends.

**You can celebrate #Gormania with a t-shirt in a variety of styles and colors. Get yours at: http://bit.ly/gormania Proceeds go to the nonprofit More Than Baseball, which supports minor league players.

08:15The Cardinals Youth Movement is already underway

21:15Will they abandon the defense-first approach for the offensive upgrades of Yepez, Gorman and Donovan? What will that mean for their pitching staff?

28:15It’s Game 7 of the World Series. The Cardinals are out of pitchers. Who would you put on the mound… Pujols or Yadi?

36:35Listener Questions

54:30What will we be watching for?

Off Day Recommendations:

Distance: The Game Belongs to Bob Gibson by Roger Angell

Roger Angell archive at The New Yorker

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit cardinalsoffday.substack.com