The St. Louis Cardinals spent last offseason trying to find a new home for Nolan Arenado, as the team’s direction has shifted from competing to solving internal issues.
“I hope it’s his last homestand as a Cardinal,” Bernie Miklasz said on “The Bernie Show” on STL Sports Central.
Miklasz would continue to say that the Cardinals need to move Arenado to a place where he can win and do right by him, as he gave the team everything he had for five seasons.
This was an ongoing theme during the last offseason and into the regular season, culminating in Arenado staying with the team after the trade deadline had passed. In the offseason, Arenado invoked his no-trade clause to remain with the Cardinals instead of heading to the Houston Astros.
After another season of declining numbers, Arenado’s value has certainly dipped, and the Cardinals are going to have to eat a hefty amount of his remaining contract to move him to a different team.
So, where does this leave the Cardinals? If they hold on to Arenado, they delay the arrival of top prospect JJ Wetherholt for a future Hall of Famer who is in the declining seasons of his career. If they move on from him, then they have to find a team that Arenado is willing to join and retain most of his remaining contract.
The next week could be the final at-bats that Arenado takes at Busch Stadium, and his tenure could go forgotten by Cardinals fans after he came to St. Louis to make a run at championships.