The Diamondbacks missed out on Alex Bregman and pivoted to another accomplished veteran.
Arizona acquired eight-time All-Star and Nolan Arenado for pitching prospect Jack Martinez, the Cardinals announced Tuesday afternoon.
Arenado, 34, has two years left on his contract and the Cardinals will pay $31 million of the remaining $42 million on the deal, per The Athletic.
The 10-time Gold Glover reportedly waived his no-trade clause to return to the NL West after spending the first eight years of his career with the Rockies.
The Cardinals had been open to moving Arenado for quite some time, with plenty of rumors circulating last offseason, and they finally found a trade partner in what can be viewed as a salary dump.
Arizona had been linked to Bregman earlier this offseason in an attempt to upgrade its offense, but he agreed to a five-year deal with the Cubs over the weekend.
Arenado now heads to the desert to man the hot corner at a much cheaper price, but with much more concern about his level of play.
The veteran posted career-worst marks in batting average (.237), on-base percentage (.289), slugging percentage (.377) and OPS (.666), while hitting just 12 homers and 52 RBIs in 102 games.
He finished with an 87 OPS-plus, indicating he was a below-average player.
Arizona is a hitter friendly park and can perhaps galvanize his bat and even if he doesn’t rebound, there isn’t much downside to what is a two-year, $11 million pact.
Arenado offsets that offensive decline by still being a strong defender, posting a plus-three outs above average last year, according to Fangraphs.
He spent five years with the Cardinals after being acquired in a trade, hitting .266 with a. 778 OPS while earning three-All-Star bids, two Gold Gloves and a third-place finish in the 2022 NL MVP voting.
While Arizona is hoping he can help guide a return to the playoffs after two straight misses following the unexpected 2023 World Series run, the Cardinals are continuing to build to the future.
St. Louis previously traded away veterans Sonny Gray and Willson Contreras — both to Boston — and now have cleared another position for a youthful player.
Brendan Donovan could be an intriguing trade option for whichever teams miss out on both Cody Bellinger and Kyle Tucker.
