The Houston Astros were seemingly close to gifting their fans a 10-time Gold Glover this holiday season, but that no longer appears to be the case.
St. Louis Cardinals third baseman Nolan Arenado reportedly blocked a potential trade to Houston, according to MLB Insider Mark Feinsand.
Arenado has been one of the league's top players over the last decade, slashing .285/.342/.515 through his 12 MLB seasons. Meanwhile, aside from finding himself on multiple MVP ballots throughout the years, the 33-year-old has earned eight All-Star nods, five Silver Sluggers and six Platinum Gloves.
While still a productive player, St. Louis is looking to reset its roster and part of that blank slate supposedly includes moving the veteran third baseman. Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak admitted as much when he said it was the team's "intention to try" and deal Arenado this winter.
And it seems they had found a trade partner in the Astros, until Arenado himself stepped in. According to Feinsand, he informed St. Louis that he would not waive his no-trade clause to go to Houston.
The Cardinals were reportedly willing to send $15-20 million to the Astros to even help pay down Arenado's salary. He is set to earn $74 million over the next three years. And as much as both teams appeared to be nearing a move -- nothing is possible without Arenadp's stamp of approval.
With a full no-trade clause in his contract, Arenado will get the final say over where he lands or if he even leaves St. Louis. Last week, his agent Joel Wolfe made it known that Arenado would be willing to waive his no-trade clause for the right situation. Namely, a club that's ready to win now. Wolfe added that Arenado would consider it "bigger than you think" when weighing his future options.
And while it's unclear why he turned down the Astros, it's unlikely their decision to trade Kyle Tucker to the Cubs earlier in the week helped prove themselves as a win-now squad to Arenado.
Houston's pursuit of the third baseman may not totally be lost as one of Feinsand's sources claims talks are still ongoing with St. Louis. Although, another source added, "it's definitely not close."
Only time will tell when and if Arenado finds his third different landing spot in the majors, but one thing is for sure, he'll get to decide where.
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