Inside The Cardinals

Cardinals Predicted To Keep $260 Million All-Star In 2026

Who will be back in 2026?
Patrick McAvoy|
Mar 6, 2019; Tampa, FL, USA; St. Louis Cardinals hat and gloves lay in the dugout at George M. Steinbrenner Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-Imagn Images
Mar 6, 2019; Tampa, FL, USA; St. Louis Cardinals hat and gloves lay in the dugout at George M. Steinbrenner Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-Imagn Images | Kim Klement-Imagn Images

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St. Louis Cardinals

Will the St. Louis Cardinals keep Nolan Arenado this upcoming offseason?

This is a topic that surely will be discussed a lot over the next few months. One sign of this is the fact that the speculation is already beginning and the regular season hasn't even ended yet. There are a few weeks left and Arenado is working his way back from his shoulder injury. And yet, the noise already is beginning.

Bleacher Report's Joel Reuter shared a column on Tuesday predicting the starting lineups for each team for Opening Day in 2026. Arenado was on Reuter's prediction for the Cardinals.

Will the Cardinals keep Nolan Arenado?

St. Louis Cardinals third baseman Nolan Arenado
Jul 23, 2025; Denver, Colorado, USA; St. Louis Cardinals third baseman Nolan Arenado (28) in the eighth inning against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images | Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images

"Projected Lineup: CF Lars Nootbaar, SS Masyn Winn, LF Brendan Donovan, 3B Nolan Arenado, 1B Willson Contreras, DH Iván Herrera, RF Alec Burleson, 2B Nolan Gorman, and C Pedro Pagés," Reuter said. "Explain the Pick: 2B Nolan Gorman. The Cardinals were one of the toughest teams to nail down, with a lot of redundant pieces on their roster, which could lead to some offseason shuffling on the trade market.

"Nolan Gorman has shown enough upside during the second half to get another look as an everyday player, but ideally that would come at designated hitter or an infield corner. Thomas Saggese is also a candidate for the second base job, along with versatile veteran Brendan Donovan, but expect the front office to unclog some of these logjams this winter."

When the offseason begins, there surely will be plenty of noise about Arenado's no-trade clause. The Cardinals have tried to move him but it didn't work out in large part due to the no-trade clause. Last offseason when the noise was at its highest, Arenado had three years left on his eight-year, $260 million deal. When the offseason gets here, Arenado will have just two seasons left on the deal.

If Arenado is on the team on Opening Day, then that is a clear sign that the team would be unable to get a deal done throughout the offseason For a rebuild, it would make sense to do so. But, also, the lineup Reuter predicted looks pretty good on paper.

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Patrick McAvoy
PATRICK MCAVOY

Patrick McAvoy's experiences include local and national sports coverage at the New England Sports Network with a focus on baseball and basketball. Outside of journalism, Patrick also is pursuing an MBA at Brandeis University. After quickly rising as one of the most productive writers on the site, he expanded his reach to write for Baseball Essential, a national baseball site in Sports Illustrated Media Group. For all business/marketing inquiries regarding Inside The Cardinals, please reach out to Scott Neville: nevilles@merrimack.edu

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