The St. Louis Cardinals went into the trade deadline knowing they needed to acquire some starting pitching, thanks to the injuries that befell Jack Flaherty and Steven Matz.
Last night, they got their man.
St. Louis made a rare trade within the NL Central with the Pittsburgh Pirates, acquiring lefty starter Jose Quintana and right-hander Chris Stratton in exchange for infielder Malcom Nunez and reliever Johan Oviedo.
Quintana is 3-5 on the season with a 3.50 ERA.
He’s enjoyed a bounce-back season of sorts with the Pirates.
Now, he heads to St. Louis to fill the hole left by the injuries to Matz and Flaherty.
The Cardinals announced the news via Twitter.
We have acquired LHP José Quintana and RHP Chris Stratton from the Pittsburgh Pirates in exchange for RHP Johan Oviedo and minor league INF Malcom Nuñez. pic.twitter.com/OSvpH8aZh1
— St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) August 2, 2022
Cards Trade For Quintana
This is a good move for the Cardinals.
They acquired two pitchers in this deal, essentially killing two birds with one stone.
Quintana is a veteran presence in a veteran rotation and could be slotted in anywhere at any point next to Adam Wainwright and Miles Mikolas.
Stratton on the other hand, gives them some much-needed innings in the bullpen, which will allow them to let Andre Pallante develop a little bit as a starter.
Pallante almost threw a complete game against the Washington Nationals on Sunday.
It’s still very possible that the Cardinals could go out and get another starter, but this move is a step forward for their embattled rotation.
The fact that they were able to swing a deal with a division rival is surprising, but it got them what they needed and gave them somebody they could rely on for a big game down the stretch or in the postseason.
A lefty also helps balance out a righty-heavy rotation.
The Cardinals addressed their pitching need.
Now we’ll see if they add another starter.
NEXT: MLB Insider Reveals Why The Cardinals Did Not Land Juan Soto