5 potential trade destinations for Nolan Arenado after openness to position change

The Nolan Arenado sweepstakes this offseason may end up being more interesting than we initially expected!

When it first came out that the St. Louis Cardinals would be entering a retool, the Arenado to the Los Angeles Dodgers rumors popped off immediately. But once reality set in, I think most fans began to understand that Arenado's trade market would be more complicated than some expected, and the Dodgers actually seem like an unlikely fit despite past interest in Arenado.

The potential market for Arenado was never going to be a fast-developing one. The Cardinals want a real return for Arenado, and teams are likely going to prioritize names like Alex Bregman and Willy Adames in free agency first before moving their interest to Arenado.

Now that it's been reported that Arenado is open to moving to first base to facilitate a trade this offseason, the potential destinations for Arenado could widen beyond the initial teams that we had speculated for Arenado. We do know of one specific team now that is weighing an Arenado trade, but other teams have called and are considering making the move as well.

Here are 5 potential trade destinations for Nolan Arenado in light of his openness to a position change

Boston Red Sox

Let's start with the known player in the room - the Boston Red Sox. It is no secret now that the club may be the most aggressive team in the industry this offseason, and depending on how their pursuits of Juan Soto, Alex Bregman, Max Fried, and Blake Snell go, the club is interested in the idea of adding Arenado to their club.

In my mind, it would make more sense for the Red Sox to move Rafael Devers to first base to make room for Arenado, something they are indeed considering, but I am sure Boston likes that Arenado is flexible with where they play him. Even though Arenado's defense is still in a good place as of today, we've seen it begin to slip, and who knows where he'll be at defensively in 2026 and beyond.

Clubs are going to be more concerned with how good his bat can be long-term, and maybe playing less third base to fill in at first base or DH more often would help him regain some of that offensive prowess.

Adding Arenado to their strong MLB roster and elite crop of prospects on the verge of debuts could help launch the Red Sox into the elite teams in the game. Props to Chaim Bloom for helping to position the Red Sox for this successful rebuild, and it's helpful that the Cardinals have him in their corner as they pick out who they'd want in return from Boston for Arenado.

Not only should the Cardinals be looking at the Red Sox for an Arenado trade, but their situation should be a reminder to fans of what Chaim Bloom is capable of doing as their president of baseball operations. Bloom did a phenomenal job building up their farm system despite the Red Sox's ownership moving the goalpost on him by the end, and so now their loss is the Cardianls' gain.