On Sunday night, the St. Louis Cardinals traded away Willson Contreras to the Boston Red Sox for a trio of pitchers, including Hunter Dobbins and two prospects.

It's the second big move between the two teams this offseason, with the Cardinals sending out Sonny Gray a few weeks ago. Once again, the Cardinals acquired only pitching in the deal as Chaim Bloom looks to rebuild the farm system.

So who are these new Cardinals? Let's take a look:

Hunter Dobbins, right-handed pitcher

A 26-year-old Texas native, Dobbins was taken in the eighth round of the 2021 MLB Draft out of Texas Tech University.

He made his major league debut with Boston in 2025, going 4-1 with a 4.13 ERA in 61.0 innings.

On the positive side of things? He's already major league ready and should be able to slot into the big-league rotation fairly quickly. He's also under team control through 2031, making him appealing as the Cardinals go into (and hopefully out of) this rebuild.

On the negative? He doesn't miss many bats, as he struck out only 45 batters in those 61.0 MLB innings. He's also coming off a torn ACL, and it's unclear if he'll be ready for Opening Day. Regardless, he should make an impact soon.

His presence raises the floor of the Cardinals roster, and should make them more watchable as they enter this period of uncertainty.

Yhoiker Fajardo, right-handed pitcher

Now ranked as the No. 9 prospect in the organization (MLB.com), Fajardo is just 19 years old. He made 19 appearances in 2025 between Rookie Ball and Single-A Salem, going 1-4 with a 2.25 ERA. He does have the ability to miss bats, as he struck out 83 batters in 72.0 innings.

He was signed in February of 2024 by the Red Sox out of Venezuela.

Blake Aita, right-handed pitcher

Now 22-years-old, Aita is not currently ranked in the Top 30 of Cardinals prospects. A sixth-round pick of the Red Sox in 2024, he went 5-7 this past season with a 3.98 ERA at Single-A Salem and High-A Greenville. He also doesn't miss many bats, as he fanned only 99 batters in 115.1 innings.

He was a sixth-round pick of the Red Sox in 2024 out of Kennesaw State.

MORE CARDINALS STORIES:

Cardinals missed golden opportunity with Murakami 

Former Cardinals IF gets new coaching job 

St. Louis Cardinals' Chaim Bloom Needs to Be Careful

Overall conclusion

Chaim Bloom did what Chaim Bloom does. He acquired a major league ready arm that can raise the floor of the rotation and make this rebuild not quite as painful while also easing the pressure on top prospects like Quinn Matthews and Liam Doyle.

The Cardinals sent $8 million to the Red Sox in the Contreras deal, allowing themselves to unlock a higher-level of prospect, which Fajardo is. And even though he's just 19, he's likely the biggest piece of this deal.

JOIN THE CONVERSATION:

Remember to join our CARDINALS on ROUNDTABLE community, which is FREE! You can post your own thoughts, in text or video form, and you can engage with our Roundtable staff, as well as other CARDINALS fans. If prompted to download the Roundtable APP, that's free too!