The deals keep on coming for one of the busiest trade seasons for the St. Louis Cardinals in recent memory. After dealing Ryan Helsley and Steven Matz last night, the Cardinals have made another trade from their bullpen, sending reliever Phil Maton to the Texas Rangers shortly before the 5pm deadline.

Cardinals trade Phil Maton to Rangers

Maton was brought to the Cardinals after Spring Training had started in what was a weird and quiet offseason for St. Louis. After they claimed to be trading pieces for a transition year, the roster was mainly the same as it was the season prior.

They signed the 32-year-old righty on March 13 for a measly $2 million in what would be the only major league deal the Cardinals agreed to coming into the year. Maton had been a valuable bullpen piece throughout his career but took his performance to a new level this year after saying he took the lack of interest from the league personal. So far in 2025, Maton is blowing past his career averages and has a 30.4% strikeout rate, best for a full season in his career, and his 2.35 ERA this year is almost two points lower than his average.

Nicknamed “Spin Rate”, Maton uses his curveball and cutter to keep hitters off of his 89.5 mph fastball. Checking his Baseball Savant page, there will be tons of red, signaling the righty is performing at a near-elite level this season. Maton made good and then some on his low salary and finishes his Cardinal career with 20 holds and two saves while becoming a fixture in an otherwise underwhelming bullpen.

Coming back from Texas are two minor league players. The Rangers are currently tied for the third Wild Card spot and are giving up a decent return for the last bit of Maton’s contract. In addition to international bonus pool money, the Cardinals will receive the Rangers’ 27th and 28th-best prospects, LHP Mason Molina and RHP Skylar Hales.

Molina is currently starting in A+ after being drafted in the 7th round of the 2024 draft by the Brewers. Texas grabbed him in January and he has flashed massive strikeout stuff, punching out 92 batters in 74 innings while only walking 28. He sits in the low-90s with a nice changeup and could stick as a starter. Hales is a 23-year-old that is currently in Triple-A despite struggling in 2025. He has a power fastball but has had an issue locating any of his pitches for strikes. He has the profile that the Cardinals made a priority in this year’s draft and could be a role in next season’s bullpen.

The Trade Deadline comes to an end with the Cardinals sending out a trio of relievers on expecting contracts. The bullpen will be a cycle of youngsters getting their shot to make an impression on the new regime.