It has been known for a year that the St. Louis Cardinals have been open to trading Nolan Arenado away. It has also been known that Arenado has been open to a deal as well, although that initially only included a few teams.
When the noise broke out last offseason, Arenado had three years left on his deal and reportedly gave the Cardinals a list of just five teams he was willing to go to: Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees, Los Angeles Dodgers, Houston Astros, and the San Diego Padres.
With a lot of money left on his deal and a limited pool of teams to even work with, nothing got done. Now, the rumors are already starting back up, but this time it is at least a bit different. The Athletic’s Katie Woo reported that the Cardinals are willing to include money to get a deal done this offseason.
“The Cardinals expect to again look to trade third baseman Nolan Arenado, with the player and the organization more open to the process than they were last year,” Woo said. “Arenado, who has a full no-trade clause, will likely expand his list of suitors past the five teams — the New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, San Diego Padres, Houston Astros and Dodgers — from last season…
“Per multiple team sources, Cardinals ownership is also willing to include more money in a trade if it helps ensure said trade goes through. That’s a stark difference from its stance last winter, when former president of baseball operations John Mozeliak was tasked with finding a partner willing to take on the majority of Arenado’s contract. Arenado, 34, is under contract through 2027 and has roughly $40 million remaining on his current deal, though that does not include deferrals or the money still being paid by the Colorado Rockies.”
Arenado has two years left his deal and although he showed that he’s still an elite defender in 2025, his bat took a step back as he dealt with injuries.
The money was the biggest talking point around Arenado last offseason, outside of his limited pool of teams. The fact that St. Louis is now willing to include more money to get a deal done is at least a sign that a trade is more likely this offseason.
If you mix together the fact that the Cardinals are reportedly now willing to include cash in an Arenado deal, plus the fact that he said towards the end of the season that he would be open to more teams, you may have a recipe for a deal to finally come together.
Leave a Reply