The St. Louis Cardinals have reportedly spent the entire offseason trying to trade star infielder Nolan Arenado. With a substantial amount of money left on his contract and the team seemingly heading into a rebuilding phase, the Cardinals have been looking to move him.
However, Arenado’s no-trade clause gives him the power to control his destination, leaving the Cardinals with limited leverage in trade negotiations. As a result, Arenado remains with the team, though it’s not because the Cardinals want him to stay.
Christopher Hennessy of ClutchPoints recently predicted that the Cardinals will likely hold onto Arenado for the entire 2025 season. He wrote, “This Cardinals offseason was defined by their quest to trade Nolan Arenado.
His no-trade clause prevented a trade to the Houston Astros, and they could not work out a deal with anyone on his approved list. So the former MVP will remain at the hot corner in St. Louis with three years left on his deal. He will stay with the Cardinals through this season, and the drama will pick up again next year.”
At this point, it seems unlikely that Arenado will be traded unless one of the six teams he’s reportedly cleared his no-trade clause for (Boston Red Sox, Los Angeles Angels, Los Angeles Dodgers, Philadelphia Phillies, New York Mets, and San Diego Padres) faces an injury to one of their starting infielders.
Although Arenado remains talented, his contract is a significant hurdle for contending teams to take on, even if the trade cost in prospects is low. It now seems probable that Arenado will finish the season with the Cardinals.
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