Inside The Cardinals

Cardinals Predicted To Retain Nolan Arenado Despite Working Tirelessly To Trade Him

St. Louis is having an unproductive offseason
Nate Hagerty|
Sep 7, 2021; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; St. Louis Cardinals third baseman Nolan Arenado (28) watches his RBI single against the Los Angeles Dodgers during the third inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Joe Puetz-Imagn Images
Sep 7, 2021; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; St. Louis Cardinals third baseman Nolan Arenado (28) watches his RBI single against the Los Angeles Dodgers during the third inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Joe Puetz-Imagn Images | Joe Puetz-Imagn Images

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St. Louis Cardinals

The St. Louis Cardinals are having a challenging offseason that was supposed to be filled with trades accompanied by significant reductions in payroll.

Unfortunately, the Cardinals' winter plans haven't panned out as hoped -- mainly due to an inability to find a trade suitor for superstar third baseman Nolan Arenado.

With Opening Day steadily approaching, the Cardinals are running out of time. It's possible St. Louis won't find a trade partner and will have to begin the 2025 season with Arenado in the lineup.

"It's hard to view the offseason as anything but a failure for the Cardinals, who began the winter intent on getting younger and ended up stuck with essentially the same roster as last year, minus Paul Goldschmidt who departed in free agency," Bleacher Report's Joel Reuter wrote Monday after including Arenado on his 2025 Cardinals lineup projection. "Projected Starting Lineup : SS Masyn Winn , 2B Brendan Donovan , 1B Willson Contreras , 3B Nolan Arenado , DH Alec Burleson , LF Lars Nootbaar , RF Jordan Walker , C Iván Herrera , CF Victor Scott II."

Arenado trade rumors continue to swirl but with former Houston Astros Gold Glove defender Alex Bregman still available, the Cardinals are having a difficult time moving the eight-time All-Star.

"Not finding a taker for Nolan Arenado means there is no clear path to playing time for slugger Nolan Gorman, who is entering something of a make-or-break year," Reuter continued. "The 24-year-old had a 116 OPS+ and 27 home runs in 2023, but he regressed significantly last year and finished with an 85 OPS+ and a staggering 37.6 percent strikeout rate in 107 games."

If the Cardinals fail to trade Arenado this winter, they'll be in a challenging spot heading into this upcoming season. Not only will his presence complicate playing time for younger talent, such as Gorman but the $74 million remaining on his contract will place the franchise's reset in a bit of a chokehold.

Hopefully, Bregman is signed soon, as that will create a much clearer path for an Arenado blockbuster trade. Whoever fails to acquire the former Astros slugger will likely pivot to the Cardinals fan favorite.

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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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