The St. Louis Cardinals opened spring training Wednesday, and the club still hasn’t been able to trade star third baseman Nolan Arenado.
The Cardinals have attempted to move the 33-year-old without finding a taker, and Arenado is slated to report to camp in Jupiter, Florida, on Sunday.
St. Louis tried to work out an Arenado trade to the Houston Astros in the offseason, but he invoked his no-trade clause to block a deal.
“We’re adults,” Cardinals general manager John Mozeliak said. “Would it be awkward? I would imagine there would be a moment of awkwardness, but I still think he’s a professional baseball player and he’s currently a St. Louis Cardinal, and we all understand once you are here, you’re pushing forward.
“Would that mean trying to accomplish something during spring training? Possibly, but there are no guarantees at that point.”
Arenado, an eight-time All-Star, underachieved last season with a .272 average, 16 homers and 71 RBIs in 152 games.
With at least 30 home runs in seven of 12 MLB seasons, Arenado has spent the past four with St. Louis after eight campaigns with the Colorado Rockies. He has three years left on his contract.
Arenado provided the Cardinals with a list of five teams he would consider for a potential trade. They are reportedly the New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, Los Angeles Dodgers, San Diego Padres and Los Angeles Angels.
“Ultimately, I did not have a large list of teams, and it wasn’t like there were 29 teams I could take him to, so I’m trying to navigate what I could work with,” Mozeliak said. “Obviously, it hasn’t moved at the pace many of us had hoped for.”
The Cardinals allowed veteran first baseman Paul Goldschmidt to leave via free agency after last season, and now manager Oliver Marmol is waiting to see how things play out with Arenado.
“You operate as if he’s coming to camp, and my conversations with [Arenado] up to this point have been exactly that,” Marmol said. “Until that changes, there is no reason to plan otherwise. So as we stand here today, we have pitchers and catchers here and we’re focused on that. Once we get to the position players being here and a full camp, we’ll address it.”
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