Goldschmidt: Nolan Arenado should fit seamlessly with St. Louis Cardinals

The Cardinals’ addition of Nolan Arenado shocked baseball. Count Paul Goldschmidt among those happy with the trade.

The St. Louis Cardinals’ addition of Nolan Arenado has drawn most of the headlines this winter, and rightfully so. He has made a talented Cardinals team even better, putting them in the conversation to compete with the Dodgers and Padres in the National League.

Count Paul Goldschmidt, a player the Cardinals traded multiple top prospects to acquire a couple seasons ago, among those stoked about the addition. He combines with Arenado to make one of the best duos in baseball, giving the team two All-Star caliber players at the corners of its infield. He has already started working with Arenado, helping him get familiarized with his surroundings and accustomed to a new brand of baseball. But Goldschmidt told reporters that he expects the transition for Arenado to be easy.

“I think that’s the culture here,” Goldschmidt said. “It’s not one player doing it on his own. It’s about trying to make this team better. I think the conversations everyone has, whether it’s on the field or off the field … guys are trying to help the team and help their teammates.

“It’s an easy group to get along with. Easy group to fit in.”

The Arenado addition improves the Cardinals in many ways. Most notably, it gives them a player who can bat in the middle of the order who can hit 40 home runs. But his defense has drawn recent buzz, with one former teammate recently noting the player who has won a Gold Glove in every season in MLB is the best defensive third baseman in baseball. Goldschmidt agrees.

“We want to be a great defensive team,” Goldschmidt said. “There’s a lot of ways to win and defense is one of them. Nolan is one of the best in the game. He’s definitely going to help us make great plays. We all expect a lot out of ourselves, and Nolan is no different.”