The St. Louis Cardinals have been selling off a lot of their veteran players this winter, with Sonny Gray and Willson Contreras both going to the Boston Red Sox.
Brendan Donovan is also garnering serious trade interest, but he's not the next veteran Cardinals player to be dealt. Nolan Arenado is being traded to the Arizona Diamondbacks in a big move for both teams.
While the Diamondbacks are getting Arenado, what are the Cardinals getting in return for their expensive veteran third baseman? The Cardinals announced the return, which included one prospect and a lot of money being taken on by St. Louis.
Cardinals details on Nolan Arenado trade with Diamondbacks
The Cardinals are getting pitching prospect Jack Martinez, the Diamonbdbacks 8th round selection from this past 2025 MLB draft, as the lone piece coming to St. Louis.
According to Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic, the Cardinals are taking on a whopping $31 million of his remaining $42 million owed to him these next two seasons.
Arenado is under contract for the 2026 and 2027 seasons for $27 million and $15 million. The Cardinals are eating $31 million of that $42 million left on his deal, giving the Diamondbacks a fairly cheap two seasons with Arenado.
The reason why the Cardinals had to take on so much money is clear: Arenado struggled mightily this past season.
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He has his worst season in the Majors as a hitter. He hit.237, but more importantly, had a.666 OPS, by far the worst mark of his 13-year MLB career.
This trade for the Cardinals is netting them a recently drafted pitching prospect in Martinez, who is 22 years old and coming off a 5.47 ERA season over 15 starts for Arizona State in 2025.
Due to Arenado's contract being such a huge figure, the Cardinals were never going to be able to land a strong return for him, especially after his major regression this past season.
Overall, the Cardinals are trading Arenado to the Diamondbacks for Jack Martinez, while taking on $31 million of Arenado's remaining $42 million owed to him over the next two seasons.
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