Why Paul Goldschmidt's Yankees Deal Actually Is Great For Cardinals

The St. Louis Cardinals unfortunately lost a long-term fixture of the organization on Saturday.

After six years in St. Louis, All-Star first baseman Paul Goldschmidt landed a one-year deal to sign with the New York Yankees. It's sad to see Goldschmidt go, but this move actually may be great for the Cardinals.

Goldschmidt now is 37 years old and it already has been reported that Willson Contreras will be replacing him at first base. He needs to adjust to the position, but if he can stay healthy, he should at least provide better offensive numbers than Goldschmidt did in 2024 so the Cardinals should actually be pretty set at the position.

What is really good about Goldschmidt's deal with the Yankees is that it could be a domino that eventually gets a trade involving Nolan Arenado done. The Cardinals sadly want to move him, but the market has moved slowly. He even turned down a deal to the Houston Astros.

There have been reports that if Goldschmidt signed with the Yankees, Arenado would be more likely to waive his no-trade clause for a trip to New York. Nothing has happened yet on that front, but it at least would give the Cardinals another trade partner to choose from in a limited pool.

Free agency has moved extremely slowly, but Christian Walker's deal with the Astros turned the first base market up into high gear and now there aren't too many more options.

Arenado should have his eyes on Alex Bregman in free agency right now and his decision seems what likely will then lead to an Areando deal. But, Goldschmidt's deal at least could give the Cardinals another potential suitor while also helping to get free agency moving.