The New York Yankees still have a hole at third base with only two weeks until Spring Training begins. As of now, DJ LeMahieu, Oswaldo Cabrera, and Oswald Peraza round out their third base options, and the team would certainly like an upgrade at that position for the 2025 season.
MLB.com’s John Denton reported on Thursday that the Yankees are among the teams that have re-engaged in trade discussions with the St. Louis Cardinals for 10-time Gold Glove Award winner Nolan Arenado. The Boston Red Sox and Los Angeles Dodgers are also among the teams negotiating for a potential trade.
While Arenado would be an automatic upgrade over their current options, a few factors make bringing him to the Bronx rather unappealing. The Yankees are attempting to construct a more balanced roster after losing Juan Soto to the New York Mets in free agency, with their biggest moves being a trade for Cody Bellinger from the Chicago Cubs and signing Paul Goldschmidt.
Arenado’s declining offense makes him a bad fit for the Yankees
By losing Soto, the Yankees will be without a major power bat in their lineup. The idea of bringing in Arenado, who is also an eight-time All-Star and five-time Silver Slugger, sounds better than it actually would be.
The 33-year-old is coming off one of his worst offensive seasons in some time. In 2024, he hit .272 with just 16 home runs and a .719 OPS, which is the lowest mark since his rookie season back in 2013. Additionally, his 23 doubles were his fewest in a full season (excluding the COVID-shortened 2020 season).
Yankee Stadium is not a large ballpark, so in theory, he could see a slight power resurgence in the Bronx. However, with him losing his power and also his ability to log extra base hits, his current offensive state might make him a bad fit for the team, and the contract he is playing under only worsens the deal.
Arenado’s contract is an unattractive component he brings
Arenado still has three years and $64 million remaining on his contract, and the Cardinals have been reluctant to have to pay over $20 million of his remaining contract if they were to trade him. The Colorado Rockies, where Arenado spent the first eight years of his big league career, are still chipping in roughly $5 million per season, though his sudden decline has the Cardinals weary about committing a large amount of money to him.
A team like the Yankees should also be less willing to take on a large chunk of his salary, as the last thing they need to do is find themselves in another Josh Donaldson situation. If the Cardinals are unwilling to pay a favorable amount of his contract in any potential deal, then the Yankees should walk away and pivot elsewhere.
The options are running out for the Yankees. Potential targets such as Ha-Seong Kim and Jorge Polanco have both come off the board in recent weeks, and it is becoming increasingly likely that one of their in-house options will be manning third base this season. However, taking on Arenado in a panic move of sorts has a better chance of hurting New York long term than benefiting them.