The Houston Astros believed they had found their replacement for free agent third baseman Alex Bregman on Wednesday, until Cardinals slugger Nolan Arenado reportedly blocked a deal that would have sent him to the Lone Star State.
According to multiple reports, the Cardinals and Astros had the framework of a deal in place, but were informed by Arenado, who has a no trade clause in his contract, that he wasn’t prepared to accept the move.
“All I can say is that we were in talks with multiple teams, and we still are, but I have nothing pending,” Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak said via MLB.com Wednesday. “We’re still working on a lot of things, and hopefully we have clarity as we get into the new year.”
According to The Athletic’s Katie Woo, “Part of Arenado’s decision stemmed from a preference to not make a decision this early in the offseason. It is unclear whether the Astros will continue heavily pursuing Arenado or pivot to other options.”
While the club hasn’t ruled out a reunion with their home grown star, the fact that they were so deep into trade talks with St. Louis indicates that the Houston front office is preparing for a post-Bregman world at the hot corner.
The 33-year-old Arenado is coming off his worst offensive season since his rookie year in 2013, turning in a .272/.325/.394 slash line with 16 home runs and 71 RBI across 152 games. He had 26 homers, 93 RBI and a .774 OPS in 144 games back in 2023. Arenado is owed $74M over the next 3 seasons, however his former club, the Colorado Rockies, are still footing $10M of that total.
With another $12M in deferred salary, and rumours that St. Louis was prepared to kick in another $20M to foot the bill, the actual total of money owed to the 10x Gold Glove winner becomes much more palatable to potential suitors. For their part, St. Louis is looking to retool on the fly following another missed postseason, as they’re looking to move on from both Arenado and teammate Paul Goldschmidt this winter.
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