Why Cardinals-Astros Nolan Arenado Blockbuster Seems Unlikely

Will the Cardinals find a way to trade Arenado away?

Sep 24, 2024; Denver, Colorado, USA; St. Louis Cardinals third baseman Nolan Arenado (28) during the first inning against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

There has been a lot of chatter over the last few days about the future of Nolan Arenado.

Well, this discussion hasn't just been over the last few days but instead has been over the last few months. The St. Louis Cardinals have been trying to trade Arenado and he even shut down a potential deal with the Houston Astros earlier in the offseason. He used his no-trade clause and is still a member of the Cardinals.

Arenado recently shared that he likely won't be willing to extend his preferred landing spot list beyond the initial one he provided to the Cardinals including the Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees, Los Angeles Dodgers, San Diego Padres, and Astros. While this is the case, he already has shut down a trade to Houston once.

Over the last few days, chatter has picked up about a potential deal coming back into fruition with Houston but it doesn't seem likely right now. The Athletic's Katie Woo and Chandler Rome shared that there hasn't been any traction yet.

At this point, Spring Training is in full swing and Arenado is a member of the Cardinals organization. St. Louis surely wants to move him, but, he already has turned down a deal to Houston, why change his mind now? The Astros added Christian Walker but lost Alex Bregman and Kyle Tucker. They could be solid in 2025 and adding Arenado would help with that, but they currently aren't one of the top contenders in the American League and have questions of their own. It just seems unlikely at this point.

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