Cardinals Rumors: Nolan Arenado confirms he'd waive no-trade clause to Red Sox

The subject of trade rumors since the offseason began, Nolan Arenado has confirmed he would be willing to join the Boston Red Sox and waive his no-trade clause. St. Louis Cardinals writer John Denton took to X (formerly Twitter) to confirm the most recent news surrounding the All-Star third baseman.

Arenado's rumor roundup

Before the new year, it was reported that the Cardinals and Astros were in agreement on a trade, sending Arenado to Houston and receiving salary relief in return. However, Arenado vetoed the deal and put his status with the Cardinals back in murky waters. This should not have been a huge surprise due to the 33-year-old leaving the Astros out of his original trade destination list.

Other suitors for Arenado appeared during the offseason, ranging from the Dodgers and Arenado's continued cryptic social media posts around LA, to the Yankees swooping in after signing former corner infield partner Paul Goldschmidt. Back near the beginning of December, I wrote how MLB Network and Jake Peavy jumped in on the trade rumors and noted the Boston Red Sox as a potential match. The proposed deal had Arenado headed to the Red Sox in exchange for bad salary Masataka Yoshida, Boston's #8 prospect Miguel Bleis, and the team's #17 prospect in pitcher Richard Fitts.

Tangible deals surrounding Arenado have not surfaced in recent days, but Denton's new report connects with Boston writer Chris Cotillo who posted that Boston was actually a "preferred destination" for the third baseman. The Red Sox were known to be prioritizing infield defense this offseason and were potentially planning to move superstar hitter but awful defender Rafael Devers across the diamond to first.

Arenado also made the curious announcement earlier in the offseason that he would be willing to switch positions to first base, despite his high-level defense at the hot corner being his best asset. Devers has been against a switch to first base, but acquiring one of the game's all-time defensive wizards at third base may make Devers' desires moot.

While nothing is finalized, this has been the most concrete news surrounding a potential destination and put an end to Arenado's days in St. Louis. With teams starting to round out rosters for spring training, it will be interesting to see how the cost of Arenado differs from the proposed trade. After seeing Cody Bellinger traded from the Cubs for a middle reliever, the initial proposal might be too much to expect from Boston.

At this point, it would be surprising to see Nolan Arenado as a member of the Cardinals when the team departs for Florida. The team has been prepared to make a trade and it appears the final nod for approval has been received. If and when the deal is finalized, the Cardinals will then make a decision on their everyday infield with options revolving around Nolan Gorman and Brendan Donovan.