The St. Louis Cardinals are days away from beginning their offseason rebuild as the World Series nears its end. After finishing 83-79 and missing the postseason, changes are coming to St. Louis.
Players on expensive deals could be shipped out, and this includes Sonny Gray, Nolan Arenado and Willson Contreras. Even closer Ryan Helsley could be on the trading block.
Arenado came to St. Louis hoping to win after sitting through a rebuild with the Colorado Rockies. But now a rebuild will be underway in St. Louis soon.
According to John Denton of MLB.com, Arenado likely will not want to sit through another rebuild.
“Arenado, 33, has mentioned repeatedly that he feels the clock on his career is ticking, and he wants to be on a team that can compete for a World Series,” Denton wrote.
The Cardinals are obviously not going to give him a chance to compete for a World Series title in 2025 and possibly 2026 as well. Contending is not the priority for the team heading into 2025.
In that case, it’s likely that Arenado is going to request a trade out of St. Louis so he can play for a contender while the Cardinals themselves focus on development and prioritize their young core of players.
Arenado had a difficult season with the Cardinals in 2024. He hit .272 but his power numbers were down, as he popped just 16 home runs and posted a .719 OPS.
The Cardinals were relying on him to return to his 2022 form, but that did not happen. Perhaps a change of scenery could help him get back to where he once was.
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