John Mozeliak, president of baseball operations for the St. Louis Cardinals, seldom comments on individual trade talks or free agent negotiations, but he did so earlier this summer with Nolan Arenado.
Back at the Winter Meetings, Mozeliak told reporters that the club had every intention of trading Arenado that offseason, and Arenado’s agent, Joel Wolfe, confirmed the idea and openly discussed Arenado’s desire to play elsewhere.
Since then, Arenado has rejected a deal with the Houston Astros, and his trade market appears to be at a standstill. Mozeliak’s belief that a trade might be completed by Christmas has not only given false hope, but there is now a real likelihood that Arenado may not be sold this summer.
John Mozeliak expressed regret in how he spoke publicly about trading Nolan Arenado
On KMOX’s “Countdown to Opening Day” with Matt Pauley and Mike Claiborne, Mozeliak discussed the situation and expressed sorrow for how he handled the speculation during the Winter Meetings.
“At the time, I thought, pretty confidently, we had a deal in place and we were likely going to move him,” Mozeliak recalled. “Here we are a month later, and clearly it did not happen. Maybe if I had known what I know now, I wouldn’t have talked the way I did that night. But what I said was what I said, and we must live with it.”
It remains unclear whether the deal the Cardinals thought they had lined up was with the Houston Astros or another team, but clearly, John Mozeliak believed they were close enough to finalizing a trade that they began informing the public about the likelihood of Nolan Arenado being moved. However, the situation has since either stalled or fallen apart, raising questions about whether the Cardinals will be able to trade Arenado after all.
In an interview, Mozeliak emphasized that the Cardinals still value Arenado and are not looking to trade him for a low return or eat a significant portion of his salary. This is a different scenario than last offseason, when Mozeliak publicly confirmed that the Cardinals intended to move Tyler O’Neill. While it was clear to the industry that O’Neill was on the block, Mozeliak’s comments likely hurt the player’s trade value, as they signaled to other teams that the Cardinals were eager to move him, which took away leverage.
Unlike O’Neill, the Cardinals seem open to holding onto Arenado if the right offer doesn’t materialize. However, they would prefer to complete a trade before Spring Training, ideally as soon as possible, to free up playing time for younger players and address other offseason needs.
It will be interesting to see if Mozeliak can complete a trade soon or if the situation with Arenado will remain unchanged. While it doesn’t appear there is any tension between the player and the team, both sides would likely benefit from a fresh start.