In the second move before the deadline the Cardinals decided to upgrade at shortstop by acquiring veteran 33 year old Rafael Furcal from the Dodgers. The Cardinals trade minor league outfielder Alex Castellanos  for Furcal in what appears to be yet another desperate move by GM John Mozeliak.  This move comes just four days after the 8 player deal that sent Colby Rasmus to Toronto. The Cardinals have made it very clear that they are tying to win now: Jackson, Patterson, Dotel, and Furcal all are due to be free agents after the seasons end, though Dotel and Furcal have options neither will probably exercised due to the Pujols situation. The cost was very cheap so the deal is low risk, high reward.

Furcal in 37 games this season is batting a mere .197(27-137) he had one home run and 12 rbi’s. Though he has only played in 37 games due to recovering from an injury and has began to pick up the pace batting .322(8-22) in the last week with five runs and two stolen bases during that stretch. Furcal has a better glove than Theriot and when healthy can swing the bat well.  With Furcal the Cardinals will move Ryan Theriot to second where he has stated he is okay with playing there to help the team win, and move Schumaker to a bench role, or possibly vice versa no official statement has been made yet.

It should be interesting to see what Furcal can do with the Cardinals, is he the final piece to the playoff puzzle? The Cardinals are still interested in the Padres closer Heath Bell. The Rangers who were considered Bell’s most serious suitor are out of the Bell sweepstakes after trading for Koji Uehera earlier today. So, if the Cardinals can find a way to add Heath Bell they will be serious contenders, a bullpen featuring: Salas, Sanchez(When activated), McClellan, Boggs, Motte, Bell, Lynn, Dotel, and  Rzepczynski would truly be a force to reckon with.