Cardinals to activate veteran 3B amid disappointing season

The Cardinals are activating veteran third baseman Nolan Arenado ahead of Monday night’s game against the Reds, as noted by Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. 

Arenado is on the 10-day injured list, meaning a corresponding move will only be needed to clear space for him on the club’s active roster.

Nolan Arenado was struggling in 2025 before injury

Arenado, 34, was perhaps the most frequently speculated upon trade candidate of the 2024-25 offseason. Although multiple teams, including the Astros and Red Sox, were reportedly involved in negotiations to deal for him, Arenado remained in St. Louis for the 2025 season after blocking a trade to Houston and Boston’s decision to pivot toward signing Alex Bregman. 

Unfortunately for St. Louis, Arenado’s fifth season with the Cardinals figures to go down as the worst of his career. In 96 games this year, Arenado has hit just .235/.294/.366 with 10 home runs. That’s undeniably lackluster offensive production for an everyday player in the big leagues, and it’s surely all the more frustrating to produce at that level for an eight-time All-Star and multi-time MVP finalist like Arenado. 

The veteran’s bat slipping has been accompanied by a similar decline in his defense. The stalwart who once won 10 consecutive NL Gold Glove Awards at third base was worth just +2 Outs Above Average on the infield this year. His +6 Defensive Runs Saved is a bit more impressive than that, but still leaves him in a three-way tie for eighth in the majors among third basemen.

St. Louis Cardinals looking to finish strong with front-office changes looming

Arenado’s disappointing season has come alongside an equally disappointing one for the Cardinals. With a 72-77 record, St. Louis finds itself in fourth place in the division and seems unlikely to even reach .500 this year, marking its second sub-.500 campaign in three years after it pushed just over .500 with an 83-79 record last season. 

The team’s future is in flux somewhat. Longtime president of baseball operations John Mozeliak is set to step aside after this season and hand the reins of the organization off to Chaim Bloom, former chief baseball officer of the Red Sox, who was announced as Mozeliak’s successor in St. Louis last year.

With a new head of baseball operations set to take over, the Cardinals are surely hoping to finish on a solid note. Those efforts will now include Arenado, who was sidelined by a shoulder strain in late July and has been on the shelf ever since. 

Nolan Gorman has handled everyday duties at the hot corner in Arenado’s absence, but with the veteran set to return Monday, it seems as though Gorman will move into a timeshare with super utility man Brendan Donovan at second base and perhaps pull occasional starts away from Ivan Herrera at DH. Gorman has a 95 wRC+ overall this year after he was sidelined by an injury around the All-Star break, and since his return in August, he has found himself mired in a slump on offense.