Who deserves the most blame for the St. Louis Cardinals stagnant offseason?

The St. Louis Cardinals remain one of the few teams who have yet to make an acquisition this offseason at the major-league level. This was to be expected, as the club was entering a self-proclaimed "reset" period. For the last few years, the Cardinals have been falling behind several clubs in production and results. Therefore, a deep internal look was necessary.

Reset or not, there are clear holes and surpluses on this team that could be fixed to make the roster better both now or in the future. Trading away veterans for prospects or younger players could be done. Signing supplementary players via free agency to fill key veteran or bench roles would have improved the ball club, too.

This begs the question: who is most to blame for the Cardinals' lack of action this offseason?

To varying degrees, Nolan Arenado, John Mozeliak, and Bill DeWitt III are all to blame for the absence of acquisitions this Hot Stove period.

Of these three, Nolan Arenado is the least responsible. He has a no-trade clause, something he has complete power to exercise whenever he sees fit. If Arenado doesn't want to go to a team where a deal has been struck between the two clubs, he has every right to decline said trade.

However, there was an agreement between the Houston Astros and the St. Louis Cardinals that would have sent the eight-time All-Star to the Astros, a club that went to the ALCS seven straight years from 2017 through 2023. Arenado opted to decline that transaction, which is well within his rights. The Astros have since pivoted and are probably no longer candidates to trade for Arenado.

John Mozeliak should carry more of the onus for the Cardinals' slow offseason. Once he knew that trading Nolan Arenado would be difficult, he could have pivoted to trading away other veterans to make room for young players. Pitchers Steven Matz and Erick Fedde have value on the open market. Mozeliak could have also traded from positions of depth like catcher to acquire pitching of some variety.

Mozeliak's fault rests with inactivity in the trade market.

In my eyes, Bill DeWitt Jr. and ownership deserve significant blame for the way this offseason has transpired.

The DeWitt family has stated a strong desire to cut back on payroll. Decreased attendance, continued fallout from the pandemic, a need to modernize the organization, expansion of the coaching staff, and uncertainty surrounding broadcast rights have forced ownership's hand and required the DeWitt family to reconsider the economics of the ball club.

However, these excuses shouldn't hamstring the payroll so much so that the Cardinals have to drop it by nearly $61 million from 2024--a figure that could grow even more dramatic if the Cardinals trade one of the aforementioned players. These cuts aren't necessary for an organization whose revenue is consistently among the top 10 teams in baseball each year.

While John Mozeliak deserves blame for not making trades, the DeWitt family is culpable for placing financial restrictions on the front office. If they truly wanted to field a competitive team next year, they should be willing to eat some of those losses temporarily to see greater dividends down the road.