7/30 09:19: Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports says to not be surprised if the Cardinals refrain from adding a starting pitcher by the July Trade Deadline.

In addition to the names below, Rosenthal adds Ted Lilly, Edwin Jackson and Jeremy Guthrie to the list of possible pitchers that could get the Cardinals attention in August.

7/30 08:22: “We explore a lot of things,” Cardinals GM John Mozeliak said on Thursday. “We go down the road and sometimes things work out and a lot of times they don’t. … We still have a lot of balls in the air.”

According to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Cardinals officials have said that they have payroll flexibility – not just to add on for this season but to acquire a player with a contract beyond 2010.

As far as middle infielders go, we talked about Stephen Drew below, but Diamondbacks’ Kelly Johnson would also be another fit. Goold mentions that it’s unlikely that Arizona would move two arbitratoin-eligible players in Drew and Johnson.

7/29 16:01; After making a good effort, but failing on acquiring Roy Oswalt from their division foes, the St. Louis Cardinals are focusing their efforts on second-tier pitching and starting middle infield help, according to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

Three pitchers could be targets of the Cards: Aaron Cook, Jake Westbrook and Paul Maholm.

We talked earlier about a possible deal for Colorado Rockies starting right-handed pitcher Aaron Cook. Cook is owed roughly $14.25 million on his deal, so he’s a pricey option.

Right-handed pitcher Westbrook of the Cleveland Indians has been in numerous trade talks.  Westbrook is a free agent after this season, and has about $4.48 million left on this year’s contract, so he’d be a good fit for the Cards who don’t want to take on too much payroll.

There’s no confirmation of the Cards’ interest in left-handed pitcher Maholm, but he could be a fit in St. Louis. The Dodgers are also looking at the left-hander.

As far as starting middle infielders, Stephen Drew has been linked to the Cardinals. GM John Mozeliak has downplayed the team’s chances of acquiring a middle infielder.