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

Cardinals, Mariners Prediction Centered On Nolan Arenado

Originally posted on St. Louis Cardinals on SI
By Patrick McAvoy | Last updated Dec 23, 2025 7:00 PM ET

The St. Louis Cardinals have two trades under their belt already this offseason and if they can find a way to unload Nolan Arenado, that will help to make this offseason a success.

So far this offseason, the Cardinals have used the trade market to load up on controllable, young pitching. There are still more pieces that could be on the move, including Arenado. Brendan Donovan is someone who will be easier to move based on all of the rumors around the league. Arenado is coming off the worst offensive season of his career and has two years left on his deal. But, he was elite defensively and dealt with injuries, which could explain the drop in offensive production.

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Cardinals president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom has spoken about the possibility of trading Arenado throughout the offseason to this point and ruled out the idea of releasing him.

So, if the Cardinals are going to get deal done, where it will be?

Let's get a little crazy

Eakin Howard-Imagn Images

Nolan Arenado Prediction: Cardinals send Arenado, JoJo Romero to Seattle Mariners

Donovan has been the guy on the Cardinals most linked to Seattle. The Mariners and San Francisco Giants were even called "front-runners" by The Athletic's Katie Woo . The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal reported on Tuesday that if the Mariners were to land Donovan, he would get most of his playing time elsewhere from second base.

"Teams place great value on young, left-handed hitting middle infielders who control the strike zone," Rosenthal wrote. "(Cole Young) projects to hit right-handers well, and the models also like his defense. So, if the Mariners acquire Donovan, who also bats left-handed, he likely would get the majority of his playing time at positions other than second base."

The Mariners had Eugenio Suárez at third base after the trade deadline down the stretch, but he's a free agent.

Reports have been out there tying Seattle to Romero. Based on all of this, it sounds like the Mariners could like Romero and may not necessarily be looking only for a second baseman. If a team like the Giants steps up and lands Donovan, maybe then the Cardinals could turn to Seattle and offer the veteran slugger -- who is 34 years old, like Suárez -- plus Romero in a package to lower the amount of cash they would have to pay on his contract. In that scenario, the Mariners could roll with Young at second base and Arenado at third base while getting a high-end reliever.

It's important to note that this is a prediction and one person's opinion. But this should be a scenario the Cardinals are hoping for.