At the St. Louis Cardinals’ end-of-season press conference, President of Baseball Operations John Mozeliak stressed that a ‘reset’ was the plan for 2025. That has been followed by a winter full of silence on both the trade and signing front.
At the center of this 'reset' has been the club's attempt to move Nolan Arenado. Last month, during the club’s Winter Warm-Up, Mozeliak said trading the infielder was, “Priority one, two, and three.” With coveted third baseman Alex Bregman still on the market, all indications point to his signing preceding any Arenado trade. Even when Bregman signs, an Arenado deal may still not come to fruition this offseason, with Mozeliak stating, “I think (a trade) is still a flip of a coin.”
Further, he mentioned that the organization would be looking to bring in some relief help, “We would like to do some things in our bullpen.” However, the fact that upper management plans to eventually sign or trade for players may fall on deaf ears to fans; the Cardinals are less than two weeks away from Spring Training and have nothing to show for their work this offseason.
John Mozeliak says trading Nolan Arenado remains “Priority 1, 2 and 3” but acknowledges the team remains in a holding pattern due to the FA market. He would like to add to the bullpen/maybe a RH-bat, but won’t before they have clarity on Arenado’s future.
— Katie Woo (@katiejwoo) January 18, 2025
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Only one Major League Baseball team has not signed an MLB free agent this winter: the St. Louis Cardinals.
That is reflected in their Opening Day payroll of $125 million, their lowest non-COVID season payroll since 2015 ($122 million). The St. Louis Cardinals are 19th in payroll, and given their amount of guaranteed contracts in the following years, that number could tank.
Substantial money comes off the books following the 2025 season:
RHP Miles Mikolas: $17.6 million
LHP Steven Matz: $12.5 million
RHP Ryan Helsley: $8.2 million
RHP Erick Fedde: $7.5 million
Looking at the payroll commitments the following year, St. Louis has just three players signed through at least 2026: Nolan Arenado, Sonny Gray, and Willson Contreras. Their total guaranteed contracts for that season sit at $69 million. If Arenado is moved, it would drop to $53 million.
With a reset stressed all offseason, the Cardinals have yet to make the necessary moves to back up their words. They should take the required actions if they claim they need to shed payroll to improve the team in the long term. Any action is better than inaction. It is the Show Me State, after all.