The New York Yankees have flexibility on their roster, allowing them to make creative moves if something interests them. Nolan Arenado could be one of those creative moves, as the Yankees could replace Gleyber Torres with him by playing Jazz Chisholm Jr. at second base.
Arenado, a future Hall of Famer, is an excellent player and is arguably one of the best to ever play third base. However, he’s slowed down some in recent campaigns, and the remaining $74 million on his eight-year, $260 million contract could be worrisome for the Yankees.
Despite the money issue, Drew VonScio of Newsweek predicted the Yankees would trade for Arenado, putting together a package to help them get a deal done.
“Cashman will need to make one more trade this offseason and grab Nolan Arenado from the St. Louis Cardinals. Arenado has three years of control left at an average annual value of $17.3 million per year.
“A hypothetical trade would involve the Yankees sending prospects such as Cade Smith (Yankees’ No. 12 prospect) and Zach Messinger (Yankees’ No. 18 prospect) to St. Louis. Arenado wasn’t his former self last year, but there is hope he can bounce back,” VonScio wrote on December 18.
Arenado’s No-Trade Clause Confuses Things
Arenado has a no-trade clause, meaning he could decline any trade if he doesn’t want to play for the New York Yankees or other teams. He already declined a trade to the Houston Astros, so it’s uncertain what he’s looking for.
According to Katie Woo of The Athletic, Arenado is willing to be traded. That should help the Yankees in their pursuit, but it’s uncertain if the Yankees are a team he’d be willing to play for.
Woo wrote that the St. Louis Cardinals are “motivated” to move him and were willing to pay “roughly $5 million each year” to the Astros.
“Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak first approached Arenado with the idea of a trade during the final week of the regular season, citing desires to lower payroll and focus on player development. Arenado, who opted into the remainder of his contract with St. Louis at the end of the 2022 season, was agreeable to the concept. He presented Mozeliak with a short list of teams he’d be willing to waive his full no-trade clause for…
“The Cardinals are financially motivated to trade Arenado, who is owed $74 million over the next three seasons. According to a league source, if Arenado approved the trade, the Cardinals were set to pay roughly $5 million each year. Houston would foot the rest of the bill, amounting to approximately $45 million after factoring in deferrals,” Woo wrote on December 18.
Yankees Checking in on Arenado
The New York Yankees’ interest in Arenado makes a trade seem possible. While others have checked in, and interest doesn’t mean Arenado wouldn’t decline a deal, the Yankees should have some understanding of whether he’d want to play for them.
According to Woo, they’ve continued to check in but have other priorities.
“The Boston Red Sox and Yankees (to an extent) continue to check in with the Cardinals, but it’s believed both organizations have higher roster priorities before pivoting to a potential Arenado deal,” Woo wrote on December 18.
The Yankees have multiple areas to fill, but if they get half of what Arenado was in his prime, he’d be an incredible piece to their lineup.
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