Nolan Arenado did not come through for the St. Louis Cardinals in the playoffs, but that does not change the fact that he is one of the club’s most important players.
For a player as passionate and driven as Nolan Arenado is, I would have though St. Louis Cardinals fans would have responded differently to the superstar.
One of the best players to wear the Birds on the Bat in the last decade, Arenado is facing a career altering decision this offseason and loves the city of St. Louis, and yet, Cardinals fans seem to be giving him every reason not to stay.
Never mind being a top 5 MVP candidate and leading the team to its first division title since 2019. Forget that he helped bring St. Louis back to the national conversation and is likely a future Hall of Famer. Brush past that he embodies almost everything you would ever want in a St. Louis Cardinal.
Arenado was both a force to be reckoned with at the plate this season (in a pitcher friendly park like Busch Stadium nonetheless) and once again a Gold Glove caliber third baseman. Before the sweep at the hands of the Phillies, no one would disagree that Arenado has been everything fans could have wanted and more this season.
Arenado did not get the job done against the Philadelphia Phillies, he is the first to say that, but St. Louis needs the 31-year old if the club wants to achieve higher goals moving forward. I do not think fans would have recommended the club cut bait with Scott Rolen in 2004 after going 0-15 in the World Series.
Captured by Carter Chapley on Twitter, Arenado’s luck during the two games against Philadelphia could not have been any worse.
Arenado is not the problem for St. Louis. Can the club win in the playoffs when their best two hitters go ice cold? No, and most teams cannot. But to even entertain the idea of the Cardinals being better off without the superstar third baseman is ridiculous.
Arenado and Paul Goldschmidt need to be the faces of this new era of Cardinals baseball. These are the guys that will make or break the Cardinals ability to contend for a World Series over the next few years. As the young core continues to develop, and hopefully as management makes aggressive moves to improve the club, Arenado and Goldschmidt will be the leaders on and off the field.