The St. Louis Cardinals made it through the MLB winter meetings in Orlando, Fla., this week without making significant moves, but there doesn't mean the team stayed silent.

The Cardinals are in the middle of a top-to-bottom organization rebuild being facilitated by president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom. That rebuild has already seen the departures of starting pitcher Sonny Gray and closer Ryan Helsley.

Transactions that did take place around the league during winter meetings could open the door for St. Louis to make more moves to build assets for the future. And a National League foe could end up as the perfect partner for the Cardinals.

The New York Mets lost closer Edwin Diaz to the Los Angeles Dodgers and first baseman Pete Alonsno to the Baltimore Orioles during winter meetings. That leaves the Mets with a need for a high-leverage arm and a first baseman, and St. Louis has two players that fit that bill.

St. Louis first baseman/catcher Willson Conteras and high-leverage reliever JoJo Romero are two players who have been floated out as potential trade candidates.

In a recent episode of the "Cardinal Territory" podcast, former Cardinals pitcher Kyle Gibson discussed Contreras' potential fit in the Big Apple.

"New York seems, for whatever (reason), they're trying to shake up the core a little bit," Gibson said on the Cardinal Territory podcast. "Or they're trying to add guys to who they believe is their core in (Francisco Lindor) and (Juan Soto) and (Mark Vientos). They're obviously trying to add some new blood in there and I think Willson would be a great fit for a lot of teams."

Another former St. Louis pitcher, Lance Lynn also was on board with the idea that Contreras would be a fit for New York, while also highlighting Romero as a potential option in a hypothetical trade between the Cardinals and the Mets.

"(The Mets) need a right-handed bat, they need some power, they need to insert some energy in that lineup from losing a guy like Pete," Lynn said on the podcast. "I definitely think that's a place that fits for him. And I think some other pieces that the Cardinals have, so-called, been saying 'they're on the block' kind of fit, too. So there might be a way that I think could work out where ... I think (the Mets) are looking for a back-end reliever because they've lost two. Maybe that's a fit for (JoJo Romero), too. There's a lot of things that fit with that trade if (the Cardinals) are really trying for sure to move those two guys."

Conteras scored 70 runs in 135 games this past season. He hit 31 doubles, a triple and 20 home runs with 80 RBIs and slashed .257/.344/.447 with a .791 OPS.

Contreras is estimated to earn a total of $36.5 million in 2026-27 with a $17.5 million club option for 2028.

Romero posted a 2.07 ERA in 2025 with 55 strikeouts in 61 innings pitched across 65 appearances. He had 24 holds and eight saves in nine opportunities.

Romero is in his last year of arbitration and is estimated to earn $5.8 million in '26, according to Spotrac.

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