"Gonna give them more than Anthony Rendon" - Cardinals pundit vouches for $260M star's Angels trade

Third baseman Nolan Arenado is emerging as the top option for the LA Angels at third base, given Anthony Rendon's persistent absence from the mound for personal and health reasons.

Arenado is signed to an eight-year, $260 million contract and will not become a free agent until the 2027 season. More importantly, his trade includes a no-trade clause, meaning the franchise will need his permission to deal him away.

On Thursday, Jad Hafron of the Locked on Cardinals podcast vouched for the Angels to push for Arenado this offseason. He took a sarcastic dig at Rendon while doing so.

"It makes a lot of sense for both sides," Hafron said. "Arenado isn’t the guy he used to be, but he’s going to give them more than Anthony Rendon has given them over the last four seasons. The Cardinals would definitely, you know, they’re going to have to eat a major chunk of the remaining salary. "We know this, along with Colorado already pitching in as well. So you’re going to have two teams helping pay the salary of the third baseman for the Angels if that’s where Nolan Arenado ends up."

For a potential trade to happen, Arenado must find an Angels role a better opportunity than the one he finds himself in. Hafron mentions the Angels' notable additions this offseason to suggest an Arendo trade is not far away.

"They brought in Kirby Yates, a brand-new signing. Alec Manoah, who we know was really, really good with the Blue Jays early on in his career, and then injuries derailed his career," Hafron said. "Grayson Rodriguez, again, injuries, but a high ceiling. Drew Pomeranz, who just had a significantly good year for the Cubs. Jordan Romano, who ended up with the Phillies, was pretty good with Toronto before that. "Utility man Vaughn Grissom, who was a guy the Red Sox thought was going to be something special. That didn’t seem to work out, but maybe he finds it in LA. They’ve still got Mike Trout, who, despite not being the superstar that he once was, still had an OPS+ of 121. Joe Adell had that breakout season. Zach Neto, Nolan Schanuel, Christian Moore, Logan O’Hoppe, these are all young, controllable players already on the roster."

Angels emerging as a possible destination for Nolan Arenado

According to multiple outlets, the Angels are reportedly on the shortlist of teams being connected to Cardinals third baseman Nolan Arenado. The Angels have been trying to move on from Anthony Rendon and Arenado presents a nice fix.

The Cardinals have been trying to remove Arenado's salary from the books since last season, but his no-trade clause has often proved to be a hindrance to making any such deal happen.

Not many teams are ready to take on Arenado's salary, and the trade ideas have been pretty narrow. As such, a lot will depend on free agents Alex Bregman and Bo Bichette, both of whom are excellent and young infielders.

Edited by Krutik Jain