Two things can happen to the St. Louis Cardinals between now and July 31 to give general manager John Mozeliak a sense of clarity and a mandate entering the trade deadline:
• The Chicago Cubs (or Milwaukee Brewers) could go on a roll, assume control in the National League Central and render the Cardinals irrelevant, prompting Mozeliak to take a hard look at his roster and sell off short-term assets to help with a big-picture revamp;
• In an alternate, better-case scenario, the Cardinals will find that missing spark, start playing better ball and put themselves in position to add a piece or two in hopes of a second-half run.