New Details Emerge From Cardinals' Willson Contreras Sweepstakes

The St. Louis Cardinals have been busy in the trade market so far this offseason with two separate swaps with the Boston Red Sox.

First, it was Sonny Gray who waived his no-trade clause to go to Boston. Then, it was Willson Contreras who waived his no-trade clause to head over to the American League East. When the 2025 season ended, Gray and Nolan Arenado were the two most talked-about trade candidates for the organization before Brendan Donovan quickly took over the national discourse. Contreras went under the radar because he made it known on multiple occasions that his preference was to remain with St. Louis.

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Things quickly shifted, though, and Contreras is now a member of the Red Sox organization. On Monday, The Athletic's Katie Woo and Will Sammon gave a look at what went down behind the scenes, including that the New York Mets had interest in him, but it was unclear if Contreras would've waived his no-trade clause for the club.

Willson Contreras drew serious interest

Aug 29, 2025; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Willson Contreras (40) throws to first to get Cincinnati Reds second baseman Santiago Espinal (not pictured) out in the second inning at Great American Ball Park. Mandatory Credit: Katie Stratman-Imagn Images | Katie Stratman-Imagn Images

"Contreras met with (Chaim Bloom) at the end of last season," Woo and Sammon wrote. "The two had an honest discussion about the team’s trajectory, and Contreras left with an understanding that a multi-year rebuild was underway. Contreras expressed a desire to stay with the club, and later communicated that stance with reporters, saying he would explore a trade only if it made sense for both him and the organization.

"As the offseason transpired, it became apparent to both parties that such a scenario existed. Shortly after Gray was traded, Contreras, who held a full no-trade clause with St. Louis, became more open to a trade. He relayed that to the front office, and conversations began to take shape during the Winter Meetings. The New York Mets reached out, but their interest was preliminary, and it was unclear if Contreras would have waived his no-trade clause to approve the trade.

"The Red Sox inquired about Contreras shortly after the Winter Meetings. After a few initial conversations, both organizations realized another deal could be made. Contreras acknowledged early in the process that he’d approve a trade to Boston, and after roughly two weeks of negotiations, the deal was done."

With Conteras holding the no-trade clause, it was known that he wasn't going anywhere unless a team piqued his interest. The big takeaway here is that Boston had his attention quickly, like it did with Gray. On the flip side, there wasn't an answer whether he would've wanted to go to New York. The Mets popped up as a potential landing spot after losing Pete Alonso to the Baltimore Orioles.

Two of the Cardinals' three players with no-trade clauses are now playing elsewhere. Now, there's one to go in Arenado.

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