The St. Louis Cardinals are still right in the middle of a very crowded playoff race in the National League, which has left them with some tough decisions to make at the trade deadline. At the moment, the Cardinals are right on the fringes of the postseason push, which means they can either be buyers or sellers at the deadline coming up at the end of July.

Two players that have been at the center of trade rumors throughout the season are star third baseman Nolan Arenado and closer Ryan Helsley. As the deadline approaches, the team could be going in different directions with the two of them.

Helsley could be on the way out as contenders seek bullpen help around the league, while St. Louis risks losing him for nothing if it doesn't deal him now according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today.

“The St. Louis Cardinals remain undecided whether they will trade closer Ryan Helsley at the deadline, but since they don’t plan to tender him a qualifying offer, they realize they may have no choice but to move him with at least five contenders showing interest,” Nightengale wrote.

As for Arenado, it seems like he will be staying in St. Louis to help the Cardinals continue their playoff push.

“The Cardinals are planning on keeping third baseman Nolan Arenado through the deadline with no teams showing strong interest in him since he rejected potential deals to the Houston Astros and Los Angeles Angels,” Nightengale reported.

It seems like Arenado has been in the middle of trade rumors for multiple years now as the Cardinals have floundered near the bottom of the standings, but he has a short list of teams that he would be willing to go to. As a result, and with St. Louis battling for a wild card spot in 2025, Arenado will be sticking around.

The Cardinals are well off the pace in the NL Central, as the Chicago Cubs currently sit 8.5 games ahead of them in the standings. However, St. Louis is just 2.5 games out of a wild card spot, so there is still plenty to play for during the back half of the season.

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