The Colby Rasmus trade is all official, as the Blue Jays sacrificed very little of long-term value in order to bring in a highly talented outfielder, while the Cardinals sacrificed a highly talented outfielder for parts of more immediate worth. It's an exciting trade for Toronto, and an exciting trade for St. Louis in a very different way.

But before the Blue Jays came up with the winning offer, the Cardinals fielded a number of offers from other teams, and Jon Heyman has details on one of them:

cards turned down niemann and howell for rasmus, reports @JoeStrauss

Jeff Niemann would've provided the desired rotation boost, while J.P. Howell would've provided the desired bullpen boost. Niemann is also under team control through 2014, while Howell is under team control through 2012. But the Cardinals didn't think this was enough, and well, that's their decision. Assuming this is even true. It's probably true, but it could easily be false.

As an additional detail, contrary to what was previously reported, the Blue Jays will hang on to Trever Miller, rather than send him to the White Sox. I know that changes your Wednesday.