Cardinals Shopping Breakout Starter Ahead Of Deadline
Per Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, with similar framing reported by Will Sammon, Ken Rosenthal and Katie Woo of The Athletic, May has become one of the more sought after arms on the summer market.
The Season Behind The Interest
May signed a one year, $12.5 million deal with St. Louis over the winter after arriving via free agency, and it's turned into one of the better value pickups of the offseason.
Writing about Dustin May (and why I like a lot of what he's doing this year), and found that this is... the only in-zone whiff his sweeper has generated against a right-handed hitter this year.
— Anthony Licciardi (@ALiccScouting) July 29, 2026
22.6% usage, 35.9% zone rate, 96.9% z-contact on 32 swings pic.twitter.com/mO4TI8nxNB
He carries a 4.59 ERA across his first 20 starts, and has cooled off over his last several starts. Over his last five starts, May holds an ugly 5.75 ERA, with 26 strikeouts and 11 walks across 20.1 innings pitched.
St. Louis also cooled off after a hot start and slid out of playoff position, pushing the front office back toward seller mode after already trading Willson Contreras, Sonny Gray, Nolan Arenado and Brendan Donovan earlier this year.
Chicago Cubs
Chicago has been floated as a strong fit given a rotation that's been gutted by injuries despite a red hot offense.
May fits the profile of a lower cost rental innings arm the Cubs need if they want to get past the Brewers and Dodgers in October.
Philadelphia Phillies
Philadelphia's rotation is close to fully healthy and among the best in baseball, so the fit here isn't about need at the top, it's about volume.
“The plan” is for the #STLCards to trade Dustin May and Ryne Stanek at the deadline, according to The Athletic
— STL Sports Central (@STLSprtsCntrl) July 29, 2026
Additionally, they will “explore interest” in Lars Nootbaar, Riley O’Brien and JoJo Romero. However, the club doesn’t feel pressure to trade any of the three
In… pic.twitter.com/FXHqm2Om32
The Phillies would be looking at May purely to eat innings down the stretch and protect their existing arms for October.
Chicago White Sox
Chicago's other club has also been connected, with a rotation that sits in the middle of the pack and could jump into the league's top 10 with an arm like May added for the final two months.
The concern for the White Sox is outbidding more aggressive contenders if better arms come off the board first.
May himself has said he'd like to stay in St. Louis, but with his contract expiring and a qualifying offer decision looming, the Cardinals are widely expected to move him before the deadline.
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