Ryan Helsley Reportedly Linked to Yankees, Dodgers, Mets, More amid Trade Rumors

St. Louis Cardinals closer Ryan Helsley "is one of the most popular trade targets" ahead of the MLB trade deadline, according to MLB.com's Mark Feinsand.

Feinsand reported Tuesday that "no less than a half-dozen teams interested to varying degrees." He specified the New York Yankees, New York Mets, Los Angeles Dodgers, Philadelphia Phillies, Texas Rangers and Toronto Blue Jays as prospective suitors.

The Cardinals didn't start a full-scale rebuild in the offseason, but the impending arrival of Chaim Bloom points to their organizational pivot. Bloom will take over from John Mozeliak as president of baseball operations after this season, and he's spending this year with a focus on the player development side.

St. Louis also unsuccessfully shopped around eight-time All-Star Nolan Arenado, another sign the team was looking beyond 2025.

At 55-53, the Cards aren't out of the National League playoff race. Only 3.5 games separate them from the San Diego Padres for the final wild-card spot.

Still, Mozeliak has to balance the short-term benefits of keeping Helsley against the fact that the right-hander has obvious trade value and will be a free agent this winter.

"It’s a little bit different this time," Helsley said while alluding to past trade rumors, per The Athletic's Katie Woo and Will Sammon. "The likelihood is probably as great as it’s ever been for me to get traded. … I would say it’s 90 percent I go, 10 percent I stay."

St. Louis got an unexpected boost with MLB placing Cleveland Guardians closer Emmanuel Clase on non-disciplinary paid leave as it continues an inquiry into sports betting allegations, per ESPN's Jeff Passan. Any team pursuing Clase will have to start looking at Helsley if it wasn't already.

Helsley has a 3.00 ERA and a 3.51 FIP, which are both his highest since 2021, per Baseball Reference. His strikeout rate (10.3 per nine innings) is on pace to decline for the third straight year as well.

Still, the 31-year-old is one of the best relievers on the board, which only became more true after removing Clase from the picture. He would almost certainly net the Cardinals a solid return in a trade.