MLB Trade Rumor: St. Louis Cardinals Pursuing Brian Dozier

It seems as though St. Louis Cardinals general manager John Mozeliak isn’t done pursuing acquisitions ahead of the 2017 season just yet. St. Louis has surfaced as a potential landing spot for the services of Minnesota Twins second baseman Brian Dozier in recent days.

Although, as Ben Frederickson of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch notes, bringing Dozier to St. Louis, doesn’t make a ton of sense.

While his 2016 numbers are appealing (99 RBI, 42 HR,.268 BA), the price tag Minnesota is requesting is probably outside of the Cardinals’ budget.

I’m told the #STLCards are not actively pursuing Brian Dozier. That doesn’t mean there hasn’t been contact at some point, of course.

— Mark Saxon (@markasaxon) December 27, 2016

St. Louis could desperately use another big bat in the lineup, but is it worth it to give up a good chunk of players, some of which might have to come from the farm system Mozeliak just replenished?

This offseason Mozeliak has established his faith in his current second baseman, Kolten Wong. Wong recently moved to St. Louis from his native Hawaii to acquaint himself better with the city a year after signing a five-year extension worth $25.5 million. So making a move for Dozier now would likely mean he gets time at third base.

Dozier hasn’t logged a single game at the hot corner his entire big league career, which makes it hard to believe Mozeliak would envision Dozier playing third base over Jhonny Peralta. The Cardinals are looking to improve the defense as noted in an earlier article, but Wong is actually the better defensive second baseman.

In terms of defensive runs saved, Wong hasn’t ranked lower than seventh since 2014, while Dozier hasn’t ranked higher than 12th in that time period. The bat would certainly be a helpful addition to a Cardinals lineup lacking in power hitters, but is the return cost worth it?

I’m no general manager by any stretch of the imagination, but if the Twins are looking to deal a hitter with good defense and a 20-plus home runs per year bat, they’ll be looking for a hefty return.

A return that could include Alex Reyes, Kolten Wong, and Trevor Rosenthal. Especially after teams saw what it took to get Adam Eaton from the Whitesox, the rest of the markets value is sure to increase.

Darren Wolfson of KTSP in Minneapolis said despite the Cardinals activity surrounding Dozier the Los Angeles Dodgers remain the frontrunners.

Dozier update: told LAD still very much in it. Here’s the new wrinkle: STL very much in it, + Nats & Giants remain in dialogue. #MNTwins

— Darren Wolfson (@DWolfsonKSTP) December 26, 2016

The Dodgers have a number of potential prospects they’re willing to part with and have a much larger void at the second base position than the Cardinals.

Los Angeles has also been tied to the possibility of resigning former second baseman Chase Utley as well as discussing the possibility of a trade with the Detroit Tigers for Ian Kinsler. However, Kinsler has a no-trade clause and would only approve a trade to the Dodgers if he were to get an extension.

The Cardinals and Dodgers were previously entrenched in discussions with third baseman Justin Turner, who eventually resigned with Los Angeles for four years at $64 million dollars.

Also in the mix reportedly for Dozier’s services are the Washington Nationals and the San Francisco Giants. Although, it’s hard to imagine the level of interest coming from Washington’s front office to be very high after dealing three of its best prospects to Chicago in exchange for Eaton.

The Giants like the Cardinals are in need of a big bat, more than they need the defense, but with Dozier only under contract for another two seasons, the likelihood that Minnesota eats some of the contract is slim, making it an unappealing acquisition for San Francisco.

[Featured Image by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images]