After countless rumors, the Red Sox decided to finally get in on the trade deadline fun late Wednesday night, with veteran pitcher Steven Matz acquired from the Cardinals. The deal was first reported by ESPN’s Jeff Passan.
A 34-year-old lefty, Matz comes to Boston in the midst of a season that’s featured a 5-2 record, 3.44 ERA, and 47 strikeouts in 55 innings over 32 appearances for the Cardinals. Matz has also posted a career-best 1.18 WHIP through his 32-appearance 2025 season with St. Louis.
Utilized as a starter for the majority of his career, Matz has been deployed out of the bullpen exclusively for the last few months.
Matz has a four-pitch repertoire headlined by his sinker (thrown almost 60 percent of the time), with strong support behind his curveball, a changeup, and a slider. Behind the sinker, Matz has a noteworthy curveball that can be downright devastating (especially against lefties), and has had some strong success with that pitch this season.
When it comes to how the Red Sox plan on utilizing Matz, it stands to reason that his recent usage means that he will be a bullpen option for Boston.
But it will be interesting to see if the Red Sox explore the idea of stretching him out (or using him as an opener at the very least), especially with Boston looking for a little more pop from the backend of their rotation.
Jul 5, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Steven Matz (32) pitches during the sixth inning against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field. Mandatory Credit: Patrick Gorski-Imagn Images
Matz, who spent the first six years of his career with the Mets before playing for Toronto in 2021, is in the final year of a four-year, $44 million contract signed with St. Louis. It’s also a bit of a full circle moment, too, as Matz had drawn interest from Boston before ultimately signing with the Cardinals.
To bring Matz to Boston, the Red Sox shipped corner infielder Blaze Jordan to the Cardinals organization. Jordan was ranked as the 17th-best prospect in the Red Sox farm system, according to MLB.com’s rankings.
Red Sox prospect Blaze Jordan walks past a sign at JetBlue Park in Fort Myers, Florida, during spring training.
The 23-year-old Jordan had enjoyed a breakout year in Boston’s minor-league ranks in 2025, with a .308 average and .872 OPS, along with 12 homers and 62 RBIS, in 88 games between Double-A Portland and Triple-A Worcester.
This trade reunites Jordan with ex-Sox chief baseball officer and current Cardinals advisor Chaim Bloom, who had taken Jordan with a third-round pick in his first year on the job in Boston in 2020. Bloom, while currently in that aforementioned advisor role with St. Louis, is set to take over for John Mozeliak as the club’s new president of baseball operations in 2026.
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