Mozeliak Nolan Arenado Likely To Be With Cardinals On Opening Day

Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak spoke to members of the media today, including and , saying that trade candidate is likely staying put. I think the mindset right now is hes likely going to be a part of our club at this point, Mozeliak said. I definitely feel like its a better chance than not that he is the clubs Opening Day third baseman. Given the events of recent weeks, thats not terribly surprising. It was about a month ago that the clubs efforts to move Arenado had largely stalled, with the Red Sox being the best remaining landing spot, but even that fit had some problems. The Sox are making a big investment in their infield, last night with . Hes reportedly going to play second base, so he doesnt on his own block Arenado from playing third at Fenway. However, the fit was already awkward with at third. Moving Devers to first and then trading or were scenarios that were bandied about this winter but they always seemed somewhat of a difficult tightrope to walk. Those scenarios are technically still po sible to imagine in a vacuum but the larger team context makes it harder to see. Bregmans deal is reportedly for $120MM over three years, a $40MM average annual value. Deferreals reportedly drop the net present value closer to $31.9MM annually but its still a huge chunk of the payroll. Arenados deal still has roughly three years and $60MM to be paid out, when factoring in deferrals and some money being picked up by the Rockies. Boston making a huge investment in their infield just to create roster problems was already a bit tough but is even tougher now with Bregmans contract on the books. today estimates the odds of Boston still being in on Arenado at about 0.0%. In the larger context of the Cardinals offseason, its a very surprising place for them to be. By late September of last year, before the 2024 campaign had even fully ended, reports had emerged that the Cardinals were planning a shift in direction. 2025 was to be a sort of reset year, with the club focusing le s on short-term contention and more on long-term player development. As part of this shift, Mozeliak would spent the 2025 still in his POBO title while Chaim Bloom focused on overhauling the clubs player Rusty Staub Jersey development system, but with Bloom to replace Mozeliak at seasons end. At that point, there was plenty of speculation that the Cards would make players available if they were expensive or nearing free agency. Arenado, , , , , and others seemed likely to be available. Now, several months later, they are all still on the roster. Contreras and Gray quickly signalled that they were unwilling to waive their no-trade clauses while the club surprisingly didnt seem to have much interest in moving Fedde or Helsley. Arenado was reportedly more willing than Gray or Contreras to consider waiving his no-trade protection, but that didnt mean he would approve any deal. There was some that Arenado had a list of six teams that he would approve a trade to, though there was also that such a firm list existed and that Arenados preferences were more context-dependent. He vetoed a deal to the Astros in December but reportedly wasnt wholly opposed to going to Houston. Rather, he had some hesitation about the clubs direction after trading to the Cubs. Rather than wait around and see if he would change his mind, the Astros took the le s-complicated route of signing to play first base. That effectively locked , acquired in the Tucker deal, into third base and made an Arenado deal far le s likely. While Arenado may not have had an ironclad team list, it seems his parameters will have to widen for anything to get done now. I think it would have to open up a little bit more, Mozeliak said of Arenados list of acceptable teams, per Jones. Think weve exhausted the others. Goold yesterday that Mozeliak had contacted five clubs that appeared to fit Arenados preferences, including the Yankees, Red Sox, Padres and Dodgers. The Astros were presumably the fifth. Goold added that the Yankees wanted the Cards to eat more of Arenados contract than they were willing to do. The Dodgers have at third and never seemed particularly interested in making a change there. The Padres are working under significant financial constraints. The Sox are now out after adding Bregman. Perhaps Arenado will change his mind and consider other options, given the circumstances. His priority appears to be winning and that seems unlikely in St. Louis this year with their reset plans. Reportedly, the Royals reached out to the Cardinals this winter but were turned away since the Cards didnt think Arenado was willing to go there. Teams like the Tigers and Blue Jays reportedly pursued Bregman and might have some willingne s to pivot to Arenado, though Arenado might not be willing to play for those clubs. If Arenado does end up staying, it will leave the Cards with some playing time puzzles to figure out. Their thinking with an Arenado trade was to save some money but also to give more playing time to guys with uncertain futures. was going to get regular run at third base as he looks to bounce back from a tough season in 2024. With Arenado still around, he could get pushed back to second base. That could block and/or nudge into a utility role where he spends more time in the outfield, perhaps taking playing time from guys like , and others. Perhaps there are some twists and turns up ahead but its been a very surprising winter for the Cardinals thus far, as an offseason that once likely to involve significant changes has resulted in very few. They havent yet signed a free agent to a major league deal and their only trade has been to acquire depth infielder from the Twins. Kenedy Corona Jersey