The New York Yankees didn't seem very interested in Nolan Arenado when the St. Louis Cardinals were muddling through their preseason, fence-straddling malaise. Now that Arenado has woken up and proven he's got more left in the tank, they're probably ... equally disinterested in paying an escalating price for a player who's likely no longer on the table! Lose-lose-lose.
There was plenty about Arenado's recent trends that made him unappealing at his current (financial and prospect) cost entering the 2025 season — particularly for the Yankees. Even on what amounted to a three-year deal at $30.5 million, his recurring back injury gave them pause. His swing, tailored for somebody else's ballpark with different gaps, felt like an easily-foreseen mistake. His bond with Paul Goldschmidt and defensive brilliance didn't outweigh the baked in regression and highly-taxed exorbitant salary.
Now, though, the Yankees look like a contender with the same glaring hole they entered the season with. The parade of options now must circulate with a bit more urgency after Oswaldo Cabrera's ghastly injury. The Yankees have lost one of their sparks, as well as their most reliable depth piece. It's a targeted upgrade opportunity amid tragedy, and Arenado has shaken off his malaise to hit .264 with a 115 OPS+ to start the year (sliding a bit recently, but still above average). After Goldschmidt's resurgence, his personal appeals might mean even more these days, too.
But the Cardinals, on a nine-game winning streak, have no reason to budge on their hefty offseason ask. They're in the thick of a postseason race and Arenado has only improved, after all.
This is the most interesting number for the surging St. Louis Cardinals: They've got a team OBP of .339, third-best in the majors behind the Yankees and Dodgers.
Donovan .374
Nootbaar .372
Victor Scott II .355
Nolan Arenado .350
Willson Contreras .345
That's a trait that often…
Yankees can't afford Nolan Arenado, who won't be available at MLB trade deadline if Cardinals keep surging
Arenado, now "excited to come to the ballpark," alongside his Cardinals teammates, feels as if something special might be brewing in his current home. If he was hesitant to waive his no-trade clause to Houston and Anaheim months ago, why would he roll the dice for a team that didn't have any interest in him in March?
The Yankees will be in the third base market this summer, unless DJ LeMahieu's unholy minor-league surge proves to be a Trent Grisham-like rebirth. But they weren't interested in absorbing the risky cost of Arenado's salary this offseason, and a few good-not-great months won't convince them to turn heel.
Besides, the Cardinals believe now, especially after the catalytic return of Masyn Winn, and they have plenty of non-fluky roster ingredients that might convince you the excitement in St. Louis could last all summer long. If you hadn't already done so in spring training, scratch this solution off the Yankees' list.
