Rafael Devers Trade Proves Cardinals Pulled Off Heist When Acquiring Nolan Arenado

The Cardinals got lucky with this move.

Jun 17, 2025; San Francisco, California, USA; San Francisco Giants designated hitter Rafael Devers (16) greets new teammate Willy Adames before taking on the Cleveland Guardians at Oracle Park. Mandatory Credit: D. Ross Cameron-Imagn Images | D. Ross Cameron-Imagn Images

The St. Louis Cardinals haven't made a blockbuster trade in quite some time. Their last such deal came before the 2021 season when they acquired Nolan Arenado from the Colorado Rockies.

When St. Louis made that deal, they didn't have to give up much. While the San Francisco Giants didn't have to give up a king's ransom to acquire Rafael Devers from the Boston Red Sox, they certainly had to give up more than what St. Louis did to land Arenado.

Josh Jacobs of Redbird Rants pointed out that the Devers deal only further cements the Arenado deal as highway robbery for the Cardinals.

"While I've seen many fans shocked at how little it seems the Red Sox got in return for Devers, I'd actually argue that's fair value for a player with Devers' profile, his age, his poor defense and long-term 1B/DH profile, as well as the massive contract he is signed to. Altogether, Devers is not the kind of player who is going to bring back a flashy return, and the fact that Boston actually got useful pieces for him and gave away the entire contract makes the Cardinals' deal back in 2021 look like highway robbery," Jacobs wrote.

St. Louis got lucky when they didn't have to give up a haul to land Arenado. And in that deal, they acquired arguably the best defensive third baseman of his era.

The Red Sox at least managed to land some useful pieces for Devers, but the Rockies failed to maximize the return for Arenado, and St. Louis landed a top player for next to nothing.

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