With the MLB winter meetings concluded, the Boston Red Sox continue their search for another star player to bolster their lineup.
St. Louis Cardinals third baseman Nolan Arenado. Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images
They fell short in signing outfielder Juan Soto, who went to the New York Mets and still have a strong interest in OF Teoscar Hernandez. As the Los Angeles Dodgers are seemingly moving closer to re-signing Hernandez, the Red Sox are setting their sights on acquiring St. Louis Cardinals third baseman Nolan Arenado through a potential trade.
Arenado, an eight-time All-Star, has a full-no trade clause, but according to Mike Masala of the Sporting News, he would waive it to be traded to Boston. Arenado would also waive the trade clause in order to be traded to the Dodgers, Mets, Padres, Phillies and Angels. He has three years and $52M left on his deal.
In his 12 seasons with the Rockies and the Cardinals, Arenado has showcased his defense and offensive prowess. He is a 10-time Gold Glove winner and led the National League in home runs three times. For his career, he has a .285 batting average with 341 home runs and 1132 RBI.
If the Red Sox acquire Arenado, besides gaining another right-handed power hitter, it also gives them the option of moving Rafael Devers from third base to either first base or the designated hitter position, according to NESN’s Tim Crowley. In 2024, Devers batted .272 with 28 home runs but committed an American League-leading 12 errors at 3B. Arenado will help shore up Boston’s struggling defense while giving them another bat that can hit for average and power.
According to Nate Hagerty of SI.com, there is speculation that the Red Sox would trade some of their top prospects to the Cardinals for Arenado, but the Cardinals might be interested in more experienced Red Sox players for him.
The speculation that Devers will move from third base to either first base or designated hitter will have an impact on teammates Triston Casas and Masataka Yoshida, who could be moved from their positions and then be traded to other teams. Wherever Devers lands position-wise could potentially send either Casas or Yoshida to the Cardinals.
Devers has led the AL in errors seven times and that speculates a move to the DH position because of his liability playing in the field, which could potentially send Yoshida to St. Louis instead of Casas. Yoshida batted .280 with 10 home runs and 56 RBI in 2024, which could attract interest from the Cardinals. If Boston gets Arenado, it will definitely create some major impacts on the team.
