Batting Around: Will the Cardinals finally find a trade partner for Nolan Arenado this offseason?

Throughout the offseason the CBS Sports MLB experts will bring you a weekly Batting Around roundtable, breaking down pretty much anything. The latest news, a historical question, thoughts about the future of baseball, all sorts of stuff. Last week we discussed teams that most need Kyle Tucker. This week we’re going to tackle the prospect of a Nolan Arenado trade.

Will the Cardinals trade Arenado this offseason? Where will he go?

Dayn Perry: I do think he gets dealt out of St. Louis this offseason. Arenado experienced further decline at the plate this past season, but he remains a top-tier defender at third base. This time around, Arenado has said he’s willing to approve a trade to more destinations than he was last offseason and, most critically, Cardinals ownership has said they’re willing to kick in more cash than they were in past trade discussions. It’s not hard to see Arenado as a 2 WAR-ish kind of player across a full season, and I think the Cardinals will pay enough of his remaining salary to make him moveable on the market. I’ll guess he lands with the Phillies. 

R.J. Anderson: Yeah, I assume Chaim Bloom will find a way to move Arenado to another team, albeit probably not until after the new year. I think Dayn’s Phillies prediction is a sensible one. I’ll go in a different direction and say the Tigers if they again fail to land Alex Bregman. Detroit could use an upgrade at the hot corner and I assume the Cardinals will be willing to eat most of Arenado’s contract to facilitate a move. A discounted Arenado, though not the splashiest or best move on the table, would make Detroit a better team.

Matt Snyder: Where there’s a will, there’s a way. The Cardinals seem pretty desperate to unload Arenado at this point and he’s expressed a willingness to be more open this time around to waiving his no-trade clause. He shouldn’t be counted on for a ton of offense at this point in his career, but a contending team looking to shore up third base defensively will show interest. I agree with R.J. on the Tigers. Would the Mariners take a look? Maybe the Mets? I’m just spitballing here, but I do think Arenado is wearing a new uniform come Opening Day in 2026.

Mike Axisa: Yeah, I think Arenado goes. It feels like there’s no putting the toothpaste back in the tube after the farewell ceremony this year. The Angels could make sense. They need a third baseman and Arenado’s a Southern California guy, though I assume winning is his priority and the Angels have lost the benefit of the doubt there. If they contend in 2026, it’ll be a surprise.

I’ll go (slightly) off the board: Diamondbacks. Jordan Lawlar has not impressed in his limited big league team and the D-backs haven’t given him the same runway they’ve given other struggling young players (e.g. Alek Thomas), which leads me to believe they don’t want to pencil him into a starting spot next year. Blaze Alexander and Tim Tawa are platoon guys more than everyday players. A heavily subsidized Arenado could be a nice little two-year stopgap for Arizona team that has an opening at third base and could contend for a postseason berth.