Cardinals could reportedly shop Miller, Lynn for shortstop help

Joe Strauss has a column about the Cardinals' offseason issues, and suggests that St. Louis could put some of their young pitching on the block to try to land a shortstop:

With Carlos Martinez meriting a look-see as a starter — and Rosenthal wanting the same — it’s increasingly likely that general manager John Mozeliak shops Lance Lynn or Shelby Miller to simultaneously create an opening while addressing a core need at shortstop.

Now, there's a pretty big difference between Lance Lynn -- a decent mid-rotation guy who turns 27 early next season -- and Shelby Miller, a highly regarded righthander who just turned 23, and who put up a 3.06 ERA in 173 innings this season.  Miller is the guy who fans are going to get fired up about possibly trading for, but Lynn is the guy the Cards are going to want to shop.

But the Rangers are a team that has a really, really good young option at shortstop, in Jurickson Profar, and a glut of talent in the middle infield.  Hypothetically, you could imagine the Rangers and Cardinals at least discussing a possible deal with Profar and Miller as the centerpieces.  Such a move would allow the Rangers to look at shopping Martin Perez or Derek Holland for the big bat they're seeking this offseason.

And there'd be a certain irony in the Rangers dealing their top young prospect for Miller, who they passed on in the 2009 draft in favor of Matt Purke (who they then could not sign, of course).

I'm sure Jon Daniels will be inquiring with the Cardinals this offseason, and I'm reasonably certain no Profar to the Cardinals deal will go down.  But hey, it is something to keep an eye on...