Despite numerous attempts from the St. Louis Cardinals to trade star third baseman Nolan Arenado, the team has been unsuccessful in those attempts to move him. It is now becoming increasingly likely that the 10-time Gold Glove Award winner will stay in St. Louis at least to begin the regular season.
Cardinals’ Nolan Arenado less likely to be traded before Opening Day
Cardinals’ president of baseball operations John Mozeliak acknowledged on Friday that there is a strong possibility that they won’t be able to move Arenado before Opening Day next month.
“I think it will be a little less awkward than I thought,” Mozeliak said, via USA Today’s Gabe Lacques. “He knows that we tried. He knows we had a deal that he didn’t accept. I’m not bitter. I don’t think he’ll be bitter. I think from a team standpoint, as a group, we can make this work. Is it the perfect outcome? No. Could it have been much worse? Sure.”
The Cardinals had engaged in talks with several teams this winter about potentially moving Arenado, including the Boston Red Sox, who signed free agent third baseman Alex Bregman to a three-year, $120 million deal earlier this week. Boston seemed to be the likeliest of destinations for Arenado before the Bregman signing, making it much tougher for St. Louis to find a new suitor in time.
The Cardinals are heading in a different direction in 2025
Arenado, 33, still has three years and $74 million remaining on his current contract. He is coming off a down year with the Cardinals in which his power numbers plummeted, as he hit just 16 home runs and boasted a league-average wRC+ at 102.
The Cardinals have seemingly chosen a direction moving forward after failing to reach the postseason in 2024. They are placing much more focus on their younger talent while trying to get off of their veterans who are playing on big contracts. First baseman Paul Goldschmidt entered free agency this winter and ultimately signed with the New York Yankees, and the Cardinals were fairly quiet in an offseason that saw a ton of movement.
A trade involving Arenado could still happen at any time between now and the trade deadline in early August, and how the team performs through the first half of 2025 could determine his future. Regardless of that, it would appear that he will at least begin the season in St. Louis.