The St. Louis Cardinals are in the thick of the NL Wild Card race. With just a half-game cushion over the New York Mets and Arizona Diamondbacks, reinforcements at the MLB trade deadline will play a key role down the stretch. The Cardinals have shown strong interest in White Sox pitcher Erick Fedde, according to USA Today's Bob Nightengale

St. Louis has platooned the fifth slot in their rotation this season. Andre Pallante, Steven Matz, and Matthew Liberatore have all made over five starts, and none carry an ERA below four. On the other hand, Fedde has returned to the major leagues after one season in Korea and posted a 2.99 ERA in 19 starts. The Cardinals will need pitching depth and can get a leg up on their Wild Card competitors by adding one of the best arms on the market.

The White Sox will almost certainly be dealing Fedde by the July 30 deadline. They entered Sunday sporting the worst record in the majors and Fedde has one year of team control remaining at a very reasonable $7.5 million. The extra year of control will get the White Sox a solid return as they continue to build their prospect pool.

They can add an arm to their future rotation by trading Erick Fedde to the Cardinals. Five of their top nine prospects are pitchers.

Cardinals add more at MLB Trade Deadline

Chicago White Sox starting pitcher Erick Fedde (20) delivers a pitch against the Los Angeles Dodgers during the first inning at Guaranteed Rate Field.
Kamil Krzaczynski-USA TODAY Sports

While starting pitching depth is a big need for the Cardinals and Fedde is far from the only arm available. The Cardinals have also been linked to Texas Rangers starter Nathan Eovaldi and Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Zach Eflin, per MLB.com. Both right-handed pitchers would fill the same role as Fedde and both have one year of control remaining. The difference here could come down to price or availability. But if the Cardinals act quickly, they can add a controlled starter for a very reasonable price.

Outside of pitching, an outfielder who can add depth to their lineup would help tremendously. With outfielders Lars Nootbaar and Tommy Edman rehabbing injuries, outfield depth will help in the interim. The lineup needs a right-handed bat to supplement the lacking production of Paul Goldschmidt and Nolan Arenado. All of these boxes can be checked by former Cardinal Tommy Pham. Fedde's current teammate in Chicago, Pham holds a career playoff batting average of .313. He boosted this by hitting over .400 in the World Series last year for the Diamondbacks.

The best business the Cardinals can do is make a package deal with the White Sox. Acquiring both Fedde and Pham would fill both of their biggest needs in one move. The Cardinals had a rare October with no baseball last year and the organization should do everything in their power to bring the playoffs back to St Louis.

With how crowded the NL Wild Card picture is, this deal is better done sooner rather than later. Adding both Erick Fedde and Tommy Pham would make the Cardinals a team to beat in the Wild Card race and a tough out in the playoffs.