The St. Louis Cardinals remain in the same place they have been over the last year with Nolan Arenado on the roster.
Arenado remains in trade rumors, but nothing has gotten done to this point. Last offseason, the Cardinals almost had a deal with the Houston Astros before Arenado squashed it. This is more of the same. Arenado was the subject of trade rumors for the vast majority of the 2025 season and the chatter has picked up steam once again this offseason. At this point, hopefully the market moves quickly so it can be put to rest.
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With each passing day, there’s more and more said about Arenado. Despite a down 2025 season, this is an eight-time All-Star and 10-time Gold Glove Award winner we are talking about. He’s one of the top overall third basemen in recent memory. At just 34 years old, there should be good years left as well for him in the big leagues, if he can stay healthy.
It’s been a long year for Nolan Arenado
Sep 21, 2025; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; St. Louis Cardinals third baseman Nolan Arenado (28) salutes the fans after he was ceremonially removed before the start of the first inning against the Milwaukee Brewers at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images | Jeff Curry-Imagn Images
On Monday, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch had a brief update on where the Arenado sweepstakes currently stands.
“The two have talked about this often and both sides believe they do, yes,” Goold wrote. “At last check, Chaim Bloom and his staff is doing a lot of the canvassing of the market and then, when necessary, bringing the info back to Arenado and his group. Arenado has both expanded the group of teams he’d consider as well as said he’ll consider what surfaces from Bloom’s conversations. At the moment, the availability of free agent third basemen — Bregman and (Eugenio Suárez), for example — is going to slow this market … just as we saw last year with Boston.
“That was an agreeable place for Arenado, but the Sox had a bid for Bregman. If (the Chicago Cubs) sign Bregman or (Detroit Tigers), for that matter, then it sure seemed like Arenado would be Boston-bound. Bregman chose Boston, then chose to opt out, and it’s the same as it was 12 months ago for a lot of parties.”
Goold also noted that he believes a trade is more likely than not.
“What’s the phrase? It’s a ‘non-zero’ chance,” Goold wrote. “There is a greater than zero chance that he does not get traded. A year ago at this time, I would have put the likelihood of his return to the Cardinals greater than the likelihood of a trade. That’s not the case at all at the moment. A trade is far more likely, but it’s not a 100 percent certainty.”
Goold is a prominent team insider seeing him write about the two sides being in communication and St. Louis “canvassing” and even bringing information back to Arenado should be considered positive. It’s also interesting that he noted that it is the “same as it was 12 months ago for a lot of parties” when referencing Boston specifically.
The Red Sox and Cardinals already have swung one trade this offseason with St. Louis sending Sonny Gray to Boston. If Bregman were to sign elsewhere, that immediately would make things a bit more interesting for St. Louis as that was one of the few teams with known interest in Arenado last offseason.
The fact that Eugenio Suárez’s market seemingly impacts Arenado is also interesting. Suárez is a talented player. He launched 49 homers in 2025 while playing for the Arizona Diamondbacks and Seattle Mariners. But he’s also 34 years old, like Arenado.
It’s a waiting game with Arenado and the Cardinals, but fortunately, the Winter Meetings will begin soon, which hopefully will thaw out the market.
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