3 potential St. Louis Cardinals trade chips that could interest the Padres this summer

2. Giovanny Gallegos

We can't see the Cardinals moving on from closer Ryan Helsley so quickly, but setup man Giovanny Gallegos would still be a fine get for the Padres if he's made available.

As is well-documented, San Diego has had issues getting the ball to its own closer Josh Hader this season in the absence of setup man Robert Suarez. Acquiring a proven commodity like Gallegos would help in this regard, bridging the gap to Hader.

The 31-year-old reliever is having a solid 2023 so far, with a 2.20 ERA and a 1.10 WHIP to pair with a 0.5 bWAR, which we only mention because the Padres' bullpen as a whole has a negative bWAR in 2023 (-0.7).

Gallegos would come with an extra year of club control plus an option year for 2025, so his price tag will be steeper than say, an Aroldis Chapman, who would just be a rental. But there's value in having an effective setup man for the long haul, so if made available, Gallegos would be worth an inquiry.