Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

Insider reveals 'theoretical fit' for Nolan Arenado trade — but there's one major issue

Originally posted on Larry Brown Sports | By Larry Brown | Last updated Feb 13, 2025 8:06 PM ET

The St. Louis Cardinals are looking to trade Nolan Arenado ahead of the 2025 MLB season, but so far, he remains with the team. If the Cardinals want to resolve the situation, they might have to look at trading Arenado to a rival team.

The Boston Red Sox seemed like a logical suitor for Arenado, but they signed Alex Bregman on Wednesday night. Them dropping out of the picture could leave the Chicago Cubs front-and-center as a possibility for Arenado. But there are a few hurdles.

Arenado has a no-trade clause, so he would have to approve a deal to Chicago. Second — and the bigger issue — is whether the Cardinals would trade Arenado to their NL Central rivals.

ESPN’s Buster Olney has pointed to the Cubs as a logical fit for Arenado since they were interested in Bregman but missed out.

What's next for Nolan Arenado? Well, one team that would be a theoretical fit would be the Cubs, one of the teams that missed out on Alex Bregman. They need a third baseman, while the Cards are trying to move the player and money... But St. Louis would have to get comfortable…
— Buster Olney (@Buster_ESPN) February 13, 2025

The Cubs would have to really want Arenado in order to make a deal with the Cardinals. The 33-year-old is still owed $74 million over the next three years. He appears to be in his decline as a player as he batted .272 with a .719 OPS last season. The OPS was his lowest since his rookie season.

Arenado remains a strong defender at third base and won the Gold Glove in every season from 2013-2022.

Although Buster Olney mentioned the Cubs as a possibility for Arenado, MLB Network’s Jon Morosi thinks the Detroit Tigers and New York Yankees are teams to watch for the third baseman.

"The Tigers and the Yankees to me are the two teams I am watching on a possible Nolan [Arenado] deal if not in the coming days, then sometime before Opening Day."

- @jonmorosi on #MLBNHotStove pic.twitter.com/djSpjeWMfM
— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) February 13, 2025

The Tigers might make a lot of sense for Arenado, but the hurdle there is he would have to approve a trade.

The Cubs and Cardinals have historically gotten together for a few trades over the last century-plus. Trades involving Lou Brock (1964) and Bruce Sutter (1980) are among the biggest-name players to be swapped between the teams.

This article first appeared on Larry Brown Sports and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: