Nolan Arenado faced another opt-out decision this offseason, but just like last year, the star third baseman has decided to remain in St. Louis. Katie Woo of The Athletic reports that Arenado has informed the Cardinals he won’t exercise the opt-out clause in his contract, and he’ll now remain with the Cards and earn $144MM over the final five years of the deal.
Since Arenado’s 2021 numbers were a bit below his usual standard (.255/.312/.494 in 653 PA), passing on the opt-out last year wasn’t too shocking, yet there was some expectation that Arenado might be tempted to test the market coming off a better platform year. The third baseman put himself into the MVP conversation in 2022 by hitting .293/.358/.533 with 30 home runs in 620 plate appearances, and he is again a Gold Glove finalist as he looks to win his 10th consecutive award.
Arenado turns 32 in April, potentially limiting his odds of adding much in the way of years to his current pact. However, it’s easy to see how he could have surpassed his current $28.8MM average annual value. Notably, fellow third baseman Anthony Rendon managed to secure an AAV of $35MM in his seven year/$245MM contract he signed with the Angels prior to the 2020 season, while Freddie Freeman’s six year, $162MM pact with the Dodgers last winter exceeds Arenado’s current deal in terms of both years and total value.
That said, Arenado’s $144MM is hardly a minor sum, and he has often spoke about his comfort level in St. Louis and his desire to remain a long-term piece of the Cardinals’ future. With this stability already in place, Arenado chose to pass on free agency, and he can now focus entirely on 2023 without the extra drama and uncertainty that follows even the names on the open market.
With Arenado’s decision now made, the Cards have checked another major task off their offseason to-do list, a few days after re-signing Adam Wainwright for the 2023 season. The Cardinals are expected to have significant room to make additions to their payroll this season, and not having to allocate additional resources to retaining Arenado should allow St. Louis to do more to address other areas of the roster. The starting rotation and outfield are possible target areas, as well as the obvious step of finding a catcher to replace retiring franchise stalwart Yadier Molina.
As The Athletic’s Nick Groke mentions, Arenado’s decision also keeps the Rockies committed to a significant financial obligation. As per the terms of the trade that sent Arenado from Colorado to St. Louis prior to the 2021 season, the Rockies owe the Cardinals $31.5MM to cover a portion of the third baseman’s salary — $16MM next season, and then $5MM each year from 2024 to 2026. The $16MM slated for Arenado is more than the Rockies are paying any player on their 2023 payroll, except for Kris Bryant.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images
Not a big shock here. He already said months ago he was.
Where?
Numerous reports throughout the year, Jon Heyman of the NY Post wrote about it a month or two ago as well. Of course, nothing was set in stone, but he made it clear he was intending to stay in St Louis.
Was looking for an actual link. And intending to stay in St. Louis could also mean using the opt-out to leverage them into paying him more $.
percent of so called mlb experts had said he would opt out for more money, but will most likely remain with the Cards this is a surprise.
Can’t you google it yourself, if you’re questioning multiple posters? Or have you already, and you’re saying you can’t find it?
I don’t know if this speaks highly of the Cardinals or of Arenado. But it’s always nice to see guys who care about more than max dollars. But the Cards seem to be an organization that players enjoy playing for.
I agree
Stan – I agree, I saw them as well.
And on a side note, thank you Mark for correcting Nick’s “opt-in” headline.
@Lyman have you seen his pay? The dude makes a mint so why would he opt out to make the same money?
?
Whew so no more “When Arendo opts out, he’ll sign with….” Posts. And good for him to control his family and future…
He didn’t have to opt in to control his family and future…
Sean Murphy for Nolan Gorman straight up is such a perfect, fair trade – do it asap boys
He also didn’t have to opt out to get more money.
Whaaaaaaaa? Yes he did. Or at least use the opt-out to leverage the Cards into an extension.
The A’s can get more than Gorman for Murphy.
Ummm actually the cardinals Would have to give up significantly more.
I’m livin rent free forever in your head, you coward loser!!!
You dont even know what I look like, amazing own. Bow to me.
Nolan Gorman will be an All-Star 3B for the A’s, they don’t need much more.
Considering a mediocre Blackburn was the A’s all-star last year, I could see the equally mediocre Gorman being the A’s ‘all-star’ representative next year. Says much more about the crappy team than it does about the crappy player. But A’s should get much more than that strikeout machine in a deal for Murphy.
if I’m the cards I would trade with the angels
Gorman
O’Neil
Flaherty
for
Zach Neto
Reid Detmers
Micheal Lorenzen
Taylor Ward
Lorenzen is a free agent. Even so, that is a bad deal for the Angels.
Attaboy Arenado Attaboy, now let’s get you and Goldschmidt a ring. Mozeliak says he’s gonna spend. Happy to see people like Nolan Arenado and Paul Goldschmidt willing to play for St Louis! Seemed like it had been a while since this team has attracted players like them
@hippy as a fellow cards fan i never thought nolan was gonna opt out for 2 reasons, from day one he felt at home here and loved the attitude of the club from the get go and my second point ties into the first nolan wanted to play for a contender. now last few years haven’t worked out for the cards but every year going into st it’s about winning a ws and the mindset of the players is just that. unlike in col where the season is already over before it starts
i’ve read a lot of books and seen some historical movies, like The Glory of Their Time, among others and I’ve always thought that St. Louis is the heart of bb. And they have the best socks in the game.
Good for him. I like it when players are loyal. Maybe they plan to add a year or two to the end of the deal.
Awesome news! Maybe he’s thinking if he takes up too much salary the team won’t be able to sign other players to form a winning team around him. Team player all the way! Lol
If you like loyal players. Signing a long term deal in Colorado and forcing your way out is not loyal.
I love arenado. He’s my fav player to see play in-person.
Eh, loyalty is a two-way street. The Rockies broke the loyalty when they refuse to put any effort into winning, not Arenado. He fully intended to be a Rockie for life if they kept trying to win but they didn’t hold up their end.
For the same reason, I was waiting to see how long Story was going to stay on a team that is in a division as strong as the NL west.
@stan, I think you’re totally correct. If I recall, the Rox had promised Arenado a winning culture and to try to add impact players around him. When they failed at that, he went sour.
In the case of the Redbirds,
it is very cool to see a player love his team, it’s culture, leadership etc. and to make less money in order to stay with that group. As @stlswifty stated above, my guess is Arenado said, I don’t need any more $ as long as you all keep improving our roster. And, as is the Cardinals way, they will. I like it!!
It doesn’t say in the contract “you can leave if we don’t win/spend”.
Eh
How can one be loyal to someone or to an organization that wasn’t loyal to you? Many people divorce their spouse bc they weren’t loyal when they were. The guy wants to compete for a World Series. That’s why he is staying in STL and why he wanted out of COL. It’s like lying to get someone to marry you. When that is exposed and is a big enough lie, it ends relationships. Loyalty only goes so far.
There has been no such reporting. That’s just people making up stories. Neither Arenado nor the Rockies have said anything publicly about what happened in that situation. One local reporter in Denver said he knows the true story but can’t tell it, which suggests something happened that goes beyond baseball.
There has been countless articles about Arenado and Jeff Bridich including ones cited by MLBTR.
Here’s one with direct quotes:
si.com/mlb/2020/02/14/nolan-arenado-rockies-2020-s…
Which pretty much says that Arenado was disloyal. A year after signing that huge deal he had a hissy fit because they didn’t go back to the playoffs immediately.
He tanked his performance in 2020. He was a bad influence on his teammates. He was a bad influence on the team.
His new team has been to the playoffs twice since the trade and lost in the WC both times. Arenado has gone 1 for 12 with no walks and a .250 OPS.
That was nothing new for Arenado in the playoffs. He was 4 for 21 with no walks and 7 SO in Colorado’s 2 appearances in the playoffs in 2017-2018.
They didn’t, “refuse to put any effort in”. They spent money, they just did it poorly.
Nothing I hate more than people who say “I know the true story but can’t tell it.” If you can’t tell it why say anything at all? Either tell us or don’t tell us but don’t 10% tell us.
It doesn’t really matter about his or the team’s reasons to me. I’m just glad Arenaldo appreciates where he’s playing and the crowded stands who appreciate him.
Guess people are finding out —-
If you say something degrading pertaining Arenado, past, present, or future—- the Cardinals Fans might take offense. LOL.
@sfbay it was widely reported that col was going to put a winning team around him when he signed and they did that for a year or two, and when things went fubar col stoped trying and went stagnant. the man wants a chance to win and play meaningful bb down the stretch not make golf plans in march. also he see’s how the cards treat there vets and feels confident that if he keeps performing they will keep him past his current contact at a good rate i.e. look at puljos, molina, and wanio
Here’s small sample size guy with a hot take. Players take far too much criticism for being lousy in the playoffs and players who are excellent get far too much credit.
Great news for the Cardinals.Bad news for us that root for other teams in their division! There’s no denying that St Louis is a unique and exceptionally well run organization that makes good decisions, develops talent, and wins. Maybe that’s more important to Arenado at this point in his career than a marginal increase in salary. I can’t help but (enviously) admire the Cardinals’ consistent success.
They were in the playoffs for two years (2017, 2018) and missed the playoffs for one year (2019). I am not counting 2020 because that year didn’t happen. How is that not putting any effort into winning? The Rockies never did anything differently before he signed the extension. People may not like or respect how the Rockies build their team, but they stick to THEIR plan. Arenado knew this when he signed or should have. He just expected them to do whatever HE wanted and when they didn’t he started whining and complaining. Good riddance to him.
I just have to wonder how he will react when/if the Cards blow up without Yadi leading their pitching staff. All you have to look at is the Giants drop off after Posey’s retirement to see how valuable a great catcher can be.
No, but that’s why the opt-outs were included. Arenado was very open with Bridich about wanting to win and Bridich did absolutely nothing to improve a bottom of the league pitching staff after 2020. They had the second to last ERA in the league at 5.59 and Bridich resigned Chi Chi Gonzales to a minor league deal. I’m betting that had something to do with his discontent.
Yes, Arenado suddenly transforms into a different player in the playoffs. Derp. What’s the causation?. For the life of me I don’t get how adults can’t understand the concept of randomness and small sample sizes. SMH.
Add in what they paid to get rid of Arenado, and it looks like the Rockies dealt Arenado away for Bryant, pretty much straight up.
It’s genius!!
Ding!
“Why is Verlander so bad in the World Series??”
Because some great pitcher inevitably will be, b/c stuff happens in small samples. It just happens to be Verlander in this timeline.
Good deal all around, save for the hapless Rockies who are paying $16 million of Arenado’s cheese this year. Rox gotta be the worst run MLB franchise after the Angels.
The Mets are in the running for that title.
Imagine inheriting a 40 WAR core and having $300 million to spend, then not winning your division and getting bounced in the first round of the postseason.
Not to mention making deals that bury you for 2023 and 2024 even if payroll continues to run around $300 million.
JackStrawb — That most certainly is not true. How you can compare the Rockies with the Mets? Makes no sense. Sure, the Mets have a wealthy owner who puts it all on the table and has created a pretty darn good roster, despite their late season uninspired play.
But we both know the Mets are a better team than the Phillies, and certainly head and shoulders above the Rockies. The Mets are not “buried for 2023 and 2024.” They’ll be very competitive and quite possibly win the NL East. The Rockies? Who cares who they sign, they’re not competing for anything with that roster, No matter how much the Rockies spend this off season.
Loyalty goes both ways… Arenado was vocal about how he felt the Rockies organization lied to him about spending and building a competitive club around him. Story spoke at lengths about the Rockies GM lying and having a negative relationship with his players as well which is why he is one of the only players who have openly refused to consider re-signing with their team.
I’m one of the few Cubs fans who actually like the Cardinals. They are a great organization, they draft well, develop, make smart trades and are loyal to the players they build around.
I mean, he’s still making nearly $30 million a year for the next five years. The ‘loyalty’ is just him not wanting to bother risking not getting a contract that big in its place. He’s 32 next year. Article cites Rendon’s deal as a comparison, but Rendon was only 29 when he signed it and it’s been a disaster since day one.
If Arenado could get 6/$180 or something, is it even worth the risk to opt out?
I think he gets 6/$210m.. so he stands to gain an extra year + probably another $50m total.
From which team?
That would allow him to get the HBO package on his cable.
LMAO
You gotta make 30 mil a year before you can go grocery shopping without looking at the price tags.
Cards are in a good spot, they have the budget to add impact players and high end prospects nearing the ML level.
Being happy and content means something to some people.
Cards should work out a deal for one of the D-Backs young CFers. Lost GG defense when Bader was traded to the Yankees. Like Carlson, but don’t think he can play CF on a regular basis. best suited for RF with O’Neill in LF. Pray both of those guys stay healthy in 2023. There’s not much depth behind them. Mostly utility types, albeit decent sorts.
Nootbaar could be a starter and maybe Yepez or Joradan Walker as well, so they do have some depth. Getting another decent outfielder would still be nice, though.
Mas respect for Arenado. Could have opted and tacked on millions more, but he stuck.
I read it as “opt out” first and my heart skipped a beat.
Even if so. Most likely was gonna be brought back anyways.
Rare choice to not maximize earnings.
When you’re making 200+ million dollars and happy in the place you’re playing who really cares? Is that extra few million going to make someone who’s set for life any happier?
…let’s ask freeman. He’s still crying in the shower each night
Yep, Freddie Freeman is now the cautionary tale for taking a risk.
How so?
Yeah, playing for the Dodgers must be so bad.
His great great great grandkids are set for life…
Receo – You are assuming MUCH, way too much, with that comment.
It is multi-generational wealth…no assumption
Yes it will
And Freeman isn’t the best example. Nolan could have gotten more $ without changing teams.
The point is Freddie “wanted to stay” but got stuck on the extra year. In all likelihood that could’ve been accomplished by including a vesting clause in the contract. He didn’t listen to the advice from Chipper Jones and the Braves front office had to make a decision for the betterment of the TEAM.
CC got more.
Good for Arenado, though.
I’m all for him wanting to stay & opting In.
It’s just rare to see a guy not hunt every single dollar.
Coming off a year like this in a weak 3B market. There had to be dollars on the table. Hard to believe there wasn’t. Perhaps the cards assured him they’d spend those dollars on getting the team better. Either way—good for all of them.
He’s already pretty close to maximizing his earnings. 5/$144 is a huge contract and not far off from what he would get on the open market. He will be 32 next year and 37 in the final year of the deal.
He will get 6 years for $180m-$210m on open market.
He won’t get anything on the open market. He opted in. He is not a FA.
Pretty sure he talked with his agent who said that he was not likely to get much more because of his age and it wasn’t worth the risk.
Plus Pujols took him aside and said. “Look at this.. Don’t make the same mistake I did.”
“He will get 6 years for $180m-$210m on open market.”
Which, imo, is not far off from what he’s already getting without having to risk anything.
6/$180 million is $30 million/year for 2023-28
5/$144 million is $28.8 million/year for 2023-27 plus whatever he would get in 2028*. Plus you factor in that the 6/$180 million free agent deal could be from a team in NY or LA or Toronto, which have higher taxes (or Texas or Florida, which have lower taxes).
*as a potential comparison, Adrian Beltre got $18 million a year over his last three years over his age 37-39 years. If Arenado even gets $10 million for his age 37 season, he’d net $154 million over 6 years.
Did he? Pujols accomplished everything he could with the Cardinals. They didn’t win any more World Series without him.
Great start to the off season for the Cards.
And Colorado is paying some of it as well?
I just checked what the “haul” they received is up to & it just blows me away how wildly imbalanced this trade was. Is the CO GM actually on the Cardinal payroll? There should be an investigation
It was a perfect storm of events. Cardinals showed a lot of interest in him making it easier to accept trade. This was right after the COVID season so most teams were cutting payroll. Plus the CO GM pissed him off making him want out. Agreed that we already won this deal.
To be fair, nobody expected Gomber to crater like he has so far, and the jury is still out on the prospects. But yes, it was a highly criticized deal for the Rockies from the beginning and has since gotten even worse for them.
Also to be fair though, nobody expected Gomber to be all that good either. There are no top level pieces in that deal that justify superstar plus cash on the other end lol
Rockies are the worst run NL team. Can’t recall the last thing they did and I said, “That was terrific!”.
NA can kinda stick it to the Rox FO …
smart, but still…
We are lucky to have you. Nolan.
Thank you
Your comment is exactly why the ST Louis fanbase is regarded as one of, if not the, best to play for in MLB.
Lol. What?
You have some brown on your nose…
A bit surprised. He is absolutely leaving around $58M or so on the table in future salaries when factoring in the roughly $4M a year in pay bumps and the extra year he probably could have justified on a new contract, but I would guess it’s not noticeable when it’s in yearly increments of $3.96M or so after taxes when you already bring home around $14.2M a year after taxes as it stands.
I am guessing he didn’t want to risk one in the hand for two in the bush and it’s also possible he feels like he makes such an insanely high salary on such a cushy deal as it is that why push for an extra 10% a year at this level?
I mean, if he’s still healthy at the end of this five year deal, he will sign another short deal and make a lot of money. He could make $10+ million in that extra year that he could have gotten if he opted out (assuming a six year deal).
Hitting FA again at 37 vs 38 could make him extra some money, which makes him opting in a little closer to what he’d get in FA.
How much money can one person spend????? After a certain amount, it’s all about greed & ego.
If I already had 10s of millions of dollars why would I need more? Why risk leaving somewhere you are happy to go somewhere where you don’t know the future. Jeez it blows my mind that all anyone cares about is money. I got offered a job with a company car and a 120,000 dollar a year salary but turned it down to stay at my 65k a year job. I did so because I am happy where I live, I have a great community around me. My kids enjoy there school and the many friends they have. We live a perfectly comfortable modest life and have no real needs. We are by no means wealthy, but I like my job, my children are happy, my wife is near her parents. I couldn’t ask for anything else. Money isn’t everything, especially when all your basic needs are met.
Well said. Everyone should not exchange happiness for more money.
It wouldn’t be “exchanging happiness for more money” if he signs with the Cards for more money.
“The more the merrier.” That’s why.
Awesome news! Maybe he’s thinking if he takes up too much salary the team won’t be able to sign other players to form a winning team around him. Team player all the way! Lol
He probably like playing with Goldy. The Cardinals have some nice young hitters as well.
He would’ve easily gotten 6 years, 35 million AAV
Easily? no, it would take a wait until February Boras type negotiation.
MO,gave him some inside info when he went to visit him last week in SoCal. The Pujols and Yadi farewell tour made them a boat load and I wouldn’t be surprised to see a high end SP (Rodon) and a power lefty bat (Pederson) come out of that money made this year. Also, I think Gorman is gonna get traded to either the A’s or Jays for Sean Murphy or Danny Jansen. Another scenario would be to allocate that money and sign Trea Turner. Either way look for the Cards lineup to be a juggernaut with a chip on its shoulder
They don’t need another starter, and Turner would still be too expensive, but otherwise yeah, a catcher, mid-tier outfielder, a mid-tier middle infielder, and some gas in the bullpen is a nice wishlist.
Every team could always use another starting pitcher. The Cards rotation is okay but they don’t have a ‘Crap, we gotta go against that guy today’ starter.
Yes, they do! Two of them, in fact, with Flaherty and Mikolas. They already have a great rotation.
There are health questions, even more than usual, but they also have great depth behind the Top 5. Meanwhile, if they add another starter and everyone is healthy, it makes no sense to have both Matz and Hudson pitching out of the bullpen.
Mikolis’ track record says he’ll be out all next year and Flaherty is a laughable. His days with the Cardinals are done. He will keep having “injuries” until he is out of town. They need to top of the rotation pitchers. Pitchers they have strike out stuff and have the ability to completely shut down any team.
FA year for Flaherty, he’s definitely going to pitch lights out for that new contract elsewhere.
He doesn’t need to. Why risk the chance of actually getting hurt and having to go into free agency with the possibility of not playing the next year. He’s shown his stuff, the league knows it, and it’s pretty obvious what he’s doing. Sit out most of another year, save the arm and get paid the same.
Sometimes it’s not all about the money…..
I’ll be interested to see Sliders attempt to make the Cardinals and Arenedo look bad for this deal. I’ll go with “I’m glad the Cardinals did this. Arenedo will go to prison for running over an old lady and the Cards won’t get salary relief because it isn’t an injury. Mo and the Cardinals are soooo stupid!!” Right now Slider is too busy chowing down at White Castle to post.
he didn’t have an out in option. only an opt out. staying, or opting out were his only options.
Pedantic.
thanks for the compliment
lol
tou must be a liberal since the truth hurts
Oh for crying out loud. Don’t politicize everything. Very few of us here are here to hear politics.
it wasn’t political. hear^
???
How was it not political when you are calling someone a “liberal.”
liberal, it’s their way of life
Arenado will only be about a 15 million payroll hit next year with Colorado paying some and deferred money down the road. Cards need to get Wilson Contreras and they have no reason to not pursue Judge. No other team can offer Judge the chance to hit between two MVP candidates.
It seems like everyone wants Contreras and with good reason. There doesn’t appear to be too many good catchers available.
Nah, spend the money on a true ace for the rotation. As for catcher, just sign or trade for someone who gives you solid defense, handles a pitching staff and isn’t a wet noodle with the bat. Tucker Barnhart anyone?
Judge is not coming to St. Louis. Even Contreras is unlikely and goes against the FO philosophy.
Judge is too expensive, and they don’t want a long term deal at catcher blocking Herrera indefinitely.
Contreras can be the guy who slowly hands it over to Herrera. Once Herrera takes it, Contreras can be a DH.
Would Contreras be open to that, though? He’s only 30 years old.
In 2-3 years, his knees might say yes.
A man of his word. Rare in sports these days. Kudos.
as the article points out, by not opting out the contribution by the Rockies continues. i anticipate there will be a 1 year extension signed soon adding a year to the existing contract benefiting Nolan and the Cardinals as Nolan gets more $ and Cardinals don’t lose money from Rockies. I would expect the additional year to pay him around 31 million
They already added a year for 15 million for the 2027 season. Why would the Cardinals lose money from the Rockies? They can’t back out of the agreement.
Nailed it.
Would have loved him to be a Ranger.
He left a lot of money on the table. I wonder where he would have ended up.
Whoohoo. Cards will continue to roll and be competitive. What is it 15 or 16 years seasons over .500? Most time winning the Central division than the current other teams combined. Great day in St Louis!
Right now they will be competitive in the Central and that is it. They need to fill some holes in that lineup and sign a few starters as you can’t trust the health of a few of the current starters and we don’t know what we will get from Wainwright..
Themed is wrong as usual. The Cards have won 12 of the 28 possible division championships.
Add up the current teams that are in the Central and tell me what their total division wins add up to. Houston had a few when they shipped them to the AL. I still say the Cards have more Titles than the other teams have put together. Prove me wrong
No you mean another 100 years
You mean not for another 100 years
You’re still wrong. Cards have 12 and the rest of the current teams have 12. That is not more.
Wow so your saying the Cardinals have won as many as the other teams combine.
Hang on to Gorman I believe he will be very good and and very productiv.
But if you wanted to do it correctly, you should be counting since 2013 when the Astros were not on the division.
Winning the central in either league is not that difficult. Building a team that will go far in the PO should be the goal for a team like the cards. And they’re getting closer to it.
Doesn’t mean he isn’t getting more money. If he’s not, the MLBPA will not be pleased.
He agreed to stay for the deal that was in place. no extra cash. MLBPA can jump off a cliff. It’s not their call.
Wrong. He agreed to the deal that was set forth. Why would they give him more money
seamaholic: He’s not OPTING OUT of his contract. Which means that he’s going to be getting paid EXACTLY what he’s already agreed to in his CURRENT CONTRACT. There’s not going to be any ADDITIONAL MONEY added to it. There’s no need or reason to extend a contract that still has 5 years left on it.
Nope. Players get extended all the time while they’re under contract. In this unusual case, the Cardinals had $15m in Rockies money at stake in his decision to opt out or not.. So they cut a deal with him: If he opts in, they’ll extend him later. I am 100% sure of it. If he didn’t get that assurance from them, it would be completely out of character for Nolan (I’ve followed him his whole career) and the MLBPA would be royally pissed.
Again. A handshake agreement plus a quarter is worth 25 cents. The Cards aren’t extending anything.
it was already extended a year for 15 million when they traded for him. Another year would be for his age 38 season. It’s not happening!!!!!
And I’m sure they will sign anyone else they want. Everyone would love to play in St Louis!
“Everyone” is a bit of a stretch.
Themed is wrong again. Pujols, Heyward, Stanton didn’t want to play there. And the Cards should be thanking their lucky stars.
Pujols “didn’t want to play there”
I’m not surprised….From everything I have heard it sounds like he is happy to be playing in St. Louis and is satisfied that the team is making an effort to contend every year.
Now in my opinion they need to add some firepower to go with Goldschmidt and Arenado in an effort to make the team a bit less vulnerable against top pitching that they’ll inevitably run into during the post season….The post season is definitely a bit of a crap shoot to a degree but having more thump in the lineup would provide a little insurance anyway.
Oh for sure. They had their two stars both have MVP seasons (which isn’t likely to repeat given their ages) and they still had a losing record vs over 500 teams. They need a lot more talent.
Well there is a bit of a talent gap between them and the top spending teams in the NL but I don’t think it is all that large. The team won 93 games but one does have to factor in the division they played in/schedule….They were 4 games under .against teams over .500 which really isn’t a big disparity…..the Phillies were 13 under just as an example…. I would agree that they do need to play better against the really good teams though.
Mozeliak says the payroll will increase…..but by how much and in what way are questions that need to be answered. The team is still well behind the Mets, Dodgers, Phillies, etc. as far as payroll goes.so I would like that gap to decrease a bit. Of course a large payroll doesn’t guarantee you a championship by any means…..but it can certainly help to keep you “in the running”.
A bit surprising but not like he is accepting chump change. Must have been worth it to him too stay in STL. Good for the, not so good for the rest of the league.
Not all that smart. He could have very easily milked the Cardinals for more years/AAV. It’s not like opting out means he has to change teams. As mentioned in the OP, comparable players have gotten more.
He will still get the extra money, likely already agreed to. By opting in and taking their word for it, he allows the Cards to get the 2nd half of the Rockies money remaining (about $15m), which isn’t chump change. They’ll announce the extension later in the off-season.
@seamaholic 2 No, the article says he’s opting in. That means he’s getting paid what his current contract says he’s getting paid. Nothing more, nothing less.
Absolutely does not mean that. Cards can extend/add money at any time, and they almost certainly will at some point this off-season (or hell, next off-season, whenever). If he wanted to stay in St Louis, which seems like the case, his options were to opt out and take his chances that the Cards would still sign him, or to opt in and take the Cards word that they would add money to his deal.
1. Of COURSE they would still sign him if he opted out
2. Just “taking the Cards’ word” is about the stupidest thing he could possibly do.
If he opts out and resigns with the Cardinals they would not have been able to collect the 31M the Rockies were paying. He would have ended up leaving St. Louis if he opted out.
I suspect was something agreed on for the future that cannot be contracted for until the Rockies end of the current deal has expired. He probably gets another year after the 2024 season is over.
“If he opts out and resigns with the Cardinals they would not have been able to collect the 31M the Rockies were paying.”
How is that Nolan’s problem?
“He would have ended up leaving St. Louis if he opted out.”
Nope!
“I suspect was something agreed on for the future that cannot be contracted for until the Rockies end of the current deal has expired. He probably gets another year after the 2024 season is over.”
A handshake agreement plus a quarter is worth 25 cents.
Actually half that $30m would be paid no matter what. It’s “only” $15m that’s at stake.
I think the AP report stated that the Rox were still on the hook for the money. It would have been the price to pay to get rid of the contract.
$20 million of the $51 million owed was hanging on Arenado’s decision.
“He probably gets another year after the 2024 season is over.”
Well, his contract does already run through 2027 so………….
Obviously not everything is about “showing the money.” Arenado, showed his real class.
Not too surprising 2023 will be his age 32 season and he already isn’t exactly being paid peanuts. BTV has him at a $7.5m surplus value and it’s nearly certain the Cards would have tagged him with the QO had he opted out so in theory he would have only gotten $7.5m minus the value of that draft pick more.
Pretty surprising. He could get a Freddie freeman contract or better, which is more than he currently has by opting into the remainder of his contract. I mean heck, even the cardinals should be more than willing to pay the extra year or 10-30 mil it would take…
He still will. Wait a month or so.
This just doesn’t even make sense. Just accept that he likes his current contract and the Cardinals. He’s not getting any more money. You’re wrong.
Seems silly to throw away any chance of a World Series or an induction to the HOF. Clearly he didn’t want to play under the pressure in LA or NY. He’s content in small markets where the fans and the media will let him pass for leaving his bat at home in the postseason. That, or he’s worried about the midterm elections and the uncertainty of living under a highly taxed, democratic economy. His loss. His regret.
Because it has to be repeated 100 times, opting out doesn’t mean he doesn’t get to stay in STL.
I’m fully versed in contracts. Don’t insult me by telling me what opting out vs not opting out means. Eat another banana and know your place.
Fully versed! That’s strong. Can you make an over easy egg too? Leave some for the rest of us big guy.
You are an idiot
you sound like an incel
Ridiculous comment
you talk like an incel
I’m sorry, are you really claiming that if you play for the Cardinals, you won’t be able to get into the hall of fame? The same team that (assuming Yadi gets elected, which is a pretty safe assumption at this point) has had at least one hall of famer on their roster every single year going back to Roger Breshanan in 1909?
That’s 114 years now. 114. Is that really the hill you want to die on?
Rangers would’ve offered him a Strasburg-like contract
Justin Turner replacement.
Max Muncy is the Dodgers 3B next year.
I like the decision!
Nolan Gorman 100% gotta be traded now, he’s such a good 3B – not on Arenado’s level but no one is – I totally expect a team with a 3B hole to trade for him and oh well look at that, Sean Murphy clears all Cardinals catchers in the whole org, lets go 1-1??
I love this!! Everybody swore Nolan was leaving! Hahaha!!! Mo went to Cali and had a private conversation with him… wonder what they talked about to make Nolan not only stay but not ask for more $$$.. something is on the horizon
I mean Nolan’s other options are all bad teams who didn’t make the playoffs last year. Boston is already penny pinching for no reason, his options were much more limited than we think. It really might have been Dodgers or Cardinals, and we all know Arenado isn’t vaxxed, so obviously he’d like the failed state that always just hemorrhages money like MO, more than a state that balances its budget every year, like CA.
They offered him more money, obviously. They got him to opt in because that’s $15m in free money from the Rockies, and he agreed. The extension will come later.
Team first. Love it. Cardinals have flexibility to be good/great for years to come.
So are the last two years the meaningful October baseball that Nolan was longing for in Colorado? Things may get even tougher next year when you don’t face the NL Central cream puffs 19 times a year like this year. Great player, good team.
Entire division will play a balanced schedule so point taken but, so?
Arrenado not opting out is a BIG middle finger to Colorado.
If he opts out then Colorado is off the hook for a lot of money. Now they have to pay a considerable amount to St Louis. I think that’s the main reason he didn’t test the free agent waters. He’s got 5 years/$144M left and he could have easily got 6/$180M. The guy’s an MVP candidate this season for pete’s sake!
You’re far more insightful than Keith Law.
Good for him. He seems to like it there. He might have left some money on the table, but likely not very much. The teams he likely would have wanted to go to in California also weren’t good options for him to go to at the moment, so I’m sure he evaluated that within this decision.
Rockies gave him away for free
Cubs will own the division in a couple years
Arenado either believed he would not match the value of the contract or surveyed the free agent market and none of the possibilities appealed to him, or it could just be he likes it in St.Louis. very few organizations are competitive year in and year out but the Cardinals always give you a chance at the postseason
The Phillies say hello. And he making all that money and didn’t show up in the playoffs sounds great lol
Why not look at his exit velocities during the 2 games? I was at game 2 and it surprised me a bit to see how hard he was hitting the ball. That’s baseball, sometimes it’s just bad luck. Bohm’s robbery kept him from a sure 2B
Called it. Congrats Arenado! A lot of things are falling into place early in this offseason. Items remaining on the checklist:
1) Catching help
2) Paul DeJong
3) LH hitting 4th OF
4) Pitching depth
Obviously also need to fill out the coaching staff. Let’s go Cards!
Who do you think is a realistic option for the Cards at C, Don? It’s such a tough position due to the lack of offense at the position league-wide.
I would like to see them sign Omar Narvaez and possibly bring back Carson Kelly if Arizona lets him go. However, now that the Arenado situation is settled, Nolan Gorman is more likely to be traded. If Oakland was willing to accept a package based around Gorman in exchange for Murphy, that feels pretty doable. The Cardinals like continuity at catcher. You can go back at least 40 years and see we haven’t had a lot of turnover. Murphy would be a long term solution and that makes a lot of sense to me.
That’s exactly who I was thinking too. And, I also really like Kelly…. But, Murphy would be fantastic on your squad, man. It’s going to be tough for whomever replaced Yadi though – those are mighty big shoes to fill.
Yes, they usually don’t have much turnover at starting catcher, but in this situation, they would prefer to have a guy for just one or two years until Herrera is ready.
DeJong will still be on the roster as a backup, a rather expensive backup, but they’ll to pay him no matter what. The question is do the Cardinals bring in another starting middle infielder or hand 2B to Donovan and/or Gorman (with Edman at SS)? Even with rising payroll, they may have to choose between getting another bat in the outfield or getting one in the middle infield.
Now all the Cards need is a Shortstop and a Catcher.
Now all the Cards need are a Shortstop and a Catcher.
Too bad for many teams. What a great player, love his defense. I still don’t know how St. Luis trade for him, having Colorado pay more than 50m where it was clear his contract had value and the opt-in was a surprise.
So the card said they are sticking with what he already has on the table and behind the scenes his agent was hearing there want going to be any bigger offers out there. So much for him wanting to win a championship. This team has too many holes. It needs a short stop, and entire outfield, a catcher and two top of the rotation pitchers. They should start the season with Walker and Wynn in the big leagues to fill two spots. Bit I like the player, so glad he’s here for a little entertainment in an otherwise non impressive team. But his fall off will come quick. Maybe one or two good years left. At least those years won’t be too costly now though.
Lmao, Cards fleeced Colorado. His remaining contract is way under value and cards still getting paid by Colorado. Between $16-20 million depending on source. As it sits right now Arenado will be second highest paid player on the Rockies next year.
Wow, he’s a man of his word. Gotta respect that. Becoming super rare these days. Awesome.
He probably got tired of the never-ending staged Pujols/Molina retirement party and didn’t want to go through another year with Wainwright being the future honoree.
Did.. Did you read the article
And that’s why he decided to stay?
?
Now all the Cards news are a Shortstop and a Catcher
Now all they need are a shortstop and a catcher.
Hey, a SS and C are all the Cards need.
And a #1 and #2 starter and three starting outfielders.
They already have all of that with Mikolas, Flaherty, O’Neill, Carlson, and Nootbaar.
Another outfielder to be the primary DH and insurance against the other three would be nice, though.
It could also be a 2B that pushes Edman to SS. Also, don’t forget about upgrading the bullpen.
Rockies still in the hole for $31.5M on the deal and paying Nolan to play in St. Louis! Colorado will never get it right with Monfort as the owner. As long as butts are in the seats their dysfunctional front office will stay in place.
Wow, I’d have bet real money that he’d have gotten something out of this, like at least an extra year.
Now Shoehi Ohtani and Christian Vasquez. And a Merry Christmas.
Not a bad decision on Arenado’s part. He gets to stick it to the Rockies one last time for 31m while freeing up some money for the cards. Not a bad move at all. Unless you’re a Rockies fan.
Loyalty. Learn from this, Xander and others.
Now all they need are a shortstop and a catcher
Sure about that?
A pitching coach, a hitting coach, a bench coach, a bullpen coach, a top of the rotation starter, and and outfield bat, but other than that
What does your team need cheese nuts?
To play the cardinals more.
They need bullpen help more than they need another starter.
this means Gorman and Walker better start learning the RF
Well, Gorman can still potentially play DH.
I realize he has a solid chance of winning a gold glove again, but it would be nice to see Hayes from my Pirates winning the gold glove this year. I am hoping for something good this year and a Gold Glove award for Hayes is all I can hope for.
Catcher is clearly a focus. Some possibilities:
Gorman, Liberatore, DeJong and the $ to cover DeJong’s contract for Sean Murphy. In essence, two top prospects and a dead cat bounce lottery ticket who could be flipped at the deadline if he shows any life.
Alternatively, I can see a fit with the D-Backs that also starts with Gorman/Liberatore (along with maybe Jordan Hicks and OF Moises Gomez) for a top SP (Gallen or M Kelly) and Carson Kelly, with Alec Burleson/Alex Thomas potentially in the discussion as well. Cards could further sweeten the deal by providing salary relief by taking on the contracts of either Melancon or Ahmed. I like how these two teams match up on a possible deal.
If the Cards choose to spend their money on a free agent pitcher/OF/MI instead, a bad contract swap could ‘provide a patch’ at catcher too. Something along the lines of DeJong to the Angels for Max Stassi or DeJong for Yasmani Grandal (and cash), with the hope that they’d bounce back from poor seasons. Either of these might make sense if STL believes Ivan Herrera is the catcher of the future and no more than a year away.
I’m very interested in seeing where the team goes when it comes to partly filling Yadi’s shoes.