The St. Louis Cardinals have lost three of their first four games since the All-Star break, adding some intrigue to what they're going to do at the trade deadli

The St. Louis Cardinals must balance long-term interests and near-term contention leading up to the July 31 trade deadline. That's a challenging needle to thread, but the current realities in St. Louis are such that they must do so.

The St. Louis Cardinals are in an interesting position ahead of the trade deadline, but the players they look to trade might not be on board.