Inside The Cardinals

Cardinals' Bill DeWitt Jr. Won't Look To Trim Roster If Nolan Arenado Is Retained

St. Louis is poised for an interesting 2025 season
Nate Hagerty|
Jun 3, 2018; St. Louis, MO, USA; St. Louis Cardinals principal owner and chairman Bill DeWitt Jr. signs an autograph for a young fan during the seventh inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Scott Rovak-Imagn Images
Jun 3, 2018; St. Louis, MO, USA; St. Louis Cardinals principal owner and chairman Bill DeWitt Jr. signs an autograph for a young fan during the seventh inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Scott Rovak-Imagn Images | Scott Rovak-Imagn Images

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St. Louis Cardinals

The St. Louis Cardinals haven't found a trade partner for superstar third baseman Nolan Arenado and with Opening Day steadily approaching, there's a chance he's retained.

Arenado's full no-trade clause limits the Cardinals to negotiating with only six teams -- the Boston Red Sox, New York Mets, Philadelphia Phillies, San Diego Padres, Los Angeles Angels and LA Dodgers.

What will happen if St. Louis fails to accomplish its top priority: trade Arenado? Cardinals chairman Bill DeWitt Jr.'s recent comments should illuminate the issue.

"One payroll update for 2025: DeWitt Jr. said today if the Cardinals don't move Nolan Arenado's contract, he would not feel the need to trim other areas of the roster to lower payroll," The Athletic's Katie Woo reported Monday.

Shedding payroll is one of the Cardinals' top priorities as they look to reset. Eliminating Arenado's three-year, $74 million contract from the equation would certainly help.

However, Arenado's trade boundaries, combined with his salary and the fact that he endured the worst offensive season of his career this past year, make moving him that much more difficult

The five-time Silver Slugger batted .272 with 39 extra-base hits including 16 home runs, 71 RBIs and a .719 OPS in 152 games played for the Cardinals in 2024.

It's looking as if Arenado will have to stick out the rebuild with a youth-laden Cardinals roster. However, there's still time left for a blockbuster trade to occur. The Boston Red Sox can't yet be counted out for the eight-time All-Star.

More MLB: NL East Contender Predicted To Snag Polarizing Ex-Cardinals Hurler To Boost Rotation

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Nate Hagerty
NATE HAGERTY

Nate Hagerty joined “Inside The Cardinals” as a content creator to spread knowledge about his favorite childhood team. A hometown native of Boston, Hagerty chose at an early age of six years old to follow the St. Louis Cardinals. The miraculous season of 04’ for the Red Sox did not deter Hagerty from rooting against his hometown team, nor did it in 2013 against the Red Birds. For all business/marketing inquiries regarding Inside The Cardinals, please reach out to Scott Neville: nevilles@merrimack.edu 

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