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Riley O’Brien is enjoying a breakout season as the St. Louis Cardinals’ closer. He is tied for second for the most saves in MLB with 25. Furthermore, he was named to the National League All-Star team. The Seattle native is enjoying success, but it has resulted in his name appearing in trade rumors. The Cardinals are in playoff contention, but President of Baseball Operations Chaim Bloom could still sell at the trade deadline.
The Cardinals should trade their All-Star closer. However, they should not trade him until the off-season.
Cardinals Should Keep O’Brien Until the Off-Season
The Cardinals currently hold the last Wild Card spot in the NL. They are right in the thick of things and could make the playoffs for the first time since 2022. They are exceeding expectations, which has raised the question of whether the team should still sell.
Bullpen Struggles Plentiful, Even With O’Brien
O’Brien has been great at the end of games. Alongside JoJo Romero and George Soriano, the Cardinals have strong options in the late innings. However, aside from those two, the bullpen has been a mess. Their bullpen is in the middle of the pack in MLB with a 4.28 ERA. Finding reliable pitchers aside from O’Brien, Romero, and Soriano has been a struggle.
Trading O’Brien would remove one of the few reliable arms in the Cardinals’ bullpen. Trading him would require someone else to take the closer’s role. Soriano could do so and would likely be effective, but then someone would need to replace Soriano’s previous role in the bullpen.
Dismantling an already struggling bullpen would hurt the team in the playoff race. While this season was not about making the playoffs when it started, the team is right in the thick of things now. Furthermore, the experience of the playoff race could be important in the long term for this young Cardinals’ roster.
An O’Brien trade would bring in a nice return. However, they should not do it at the expense of weakening the bullpen. However, the Cardinals could still trade him in the off-season. In fact, they should.
Sell High On O’Brien
Bloom should consider selling high on O’Brien this winter. O’Brien is 31 and has years of team control remaining. Players typically do not have team control at that age, but prior injuries delayed his service time. While O’Brien may be in the prime of his career right now and in the middle of a breakout season, Bloom should realize that he may not remain as dominant in a few seasons. His value may never be higher, so take advantage of that.
This is a rare instance where the Cardinals can have their cake and eat it too. They can keep their effective closer the remainder of the season and hopefully reach the playoffs. Then in the off-season, Bloom can still sell high on O’Brien and get a nice return without jeopardizing the team’s postseason chances.
Lessons of the Past
Bloom should also sell high on O’Brien this off-season due to what the organization experienced with Ryan Helsley. In 2024, Helsley was an All-Star who recorded 49 saves. Then-President of Baseball Operations John Mozeliak could have dealt Helsley for a large return, but instead held onto him. Helsley’s 2025 was not as sharp, so when he was finally traded, the return was much smaller.
Helsley was also the same age as O’Brien when these decisions were made. Bloom should learn from the past and take advantage of having a closer who teams will be interested in. If Bloom’s goal is to rebuild the farm system, then trading O’Brien would be a great way to work towards that.
The Last Word
The Cardinals have the rare opportunity to remain in playoff contention while also lining things up to make a big trade in the off-season. Will Bloom go down this path? Time will tell, but it will be interesting to watch.
