Cardinals' Nolan Arenado: Willing to play first base
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Arenado is willing to play some first base in order to create roster flexibility for the team acquiring him in a potential trade, Katie Woo of The Athletic reports.
A large part of Arenado's value comes from his defense at third base, so it's not clear how many clubs would be looking to shift him to the other side of the diamond even on a part-time basis. Still, some flexibility can't hurt and also seems to speak to Arenado's eagerness to waive his no-trade clause that he's even willing to entertain the possibility. Woo notes that a few teams have expressed interest in Arenado, but those talks "have yet to yield any substantive progress." However, negotiations are expected to pick up around the winter meetings and there is a "growing sense" in the industry that Arenado will be dealt.
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Cardinals' Matt Svanson: Shielded from Rule 5 draft
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The Cardinals added Svanson to the 40-man roster Tuesday.
A 25-year-old righty reliever who has not pitched above Double-A, Svanson logged a 2.69 ERA, 1.46 WHIP and 59 strikeouts in 63.2 innings while notching 27 saves for Double-A Springfield. He will likely head to Triple-A Memphis to start the year, but should be an option to provide big-league bullpen depth throughout the summer.
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Cardinals' Matt Koperniak: Contract selected
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The Cardinals selected Koperniak's contract from Triple-A Memphis on Tuesday.
Koperniak is coming off a terrific season with Memphis, having slashed .309/.370/.512 with 20 home runs. He'll turn 27 in February and is more of a fourth outfielder type, but St. Louis felt obligated to keep him away from the Rule 5 Draft.
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Cardinals' Tekoah Roby: Added to 40-man roster
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The Cardinals selected Roby's contract from Double-A Springfield on Tuesday.
Roby was limited to just 38.1 frames in 2024 due to injury and posted a 6.57 ERA in his 10 starts. However, the 23-year-old has displayed terrific stuff when healthy and the Cardinals didn't want to risk losing him in the Rule 5 Draft.
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Cardinals' Drew Rom: Outrighted to Triple-A
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Rom (shoulder) cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Memphis on Tuesday.
The Cardinals added some prospects to the 40-man roster as Rule 5 draft protection, so Rom was a roster casualty. He had arthroscopic shoulder surgery in May and did not pitch at all in 2024. If he's healthy this spring, he should provide rotation depth at Triple-A.
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Cardinals' Tink Hence: Protected from Rule 5 Draft
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The Cardinals selected Hence's contract from Double-A Springfield on Tuesday.
Hence has had trouble staying on the mound, having never reached 100 innings in a season. He was terrific over his 79.2 frames in 2024, however, collecting a 2.71 ERA and 109:26 K:BB with Springfield. Hence is now protected from the Rule 5 Draft.
Cardinals' Jose Barrero: Invited to Cardinals' camp
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Barrero signed a minor-league contract with the Cardinals on Saturday and received an invitation to spring training, Francys Romero of BeisbolFR.com reports.
Barrero owns just a .497 OPS across 447 plate appearances in his major-league career, and his offensive woes followed him to Triple-A last season, where he slashed .188/.277/.345 over 49 games. His chances of contributing for the Cardinals will remain low as long as he continues to struggle at the plate, though the 26-year-old may still see a healthy amount of playing time with Triple-A Memphis.
Cardinals' Ryan Helsley: Move to rotation not considered
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The Cardinals are not mulling a move to the rotation for Helsley, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.
All 239 appearances for Helsley at the major-league level have come in relief, but he came up through the minors as a starting pitcher. While there has been some speculation the Cardinals might consider giving the 30-year-old another chance to start, it does not appear that is in the plans following Helsley's major-league-leading 49 saves in 2024. They will, however, reportedly entertain trade offers for Helsley, who is entering his final year of arbitration eligibility.
Cardinals' Nolan Arenado: Trade possibilities to be explored
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The Cardinals are expected to gauge trade interest in Arenado this month, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.
President of baseball operations John Mozeliak said Wednesday that at least one of the team's four players with no-trade clauses is open to the club exploring trade interest from other teams. It seems that player is Arenado, who is owed $74 million over the next three seasons (with $10 million of that being covered by the Rockies). Arenado will turn 34 in April and fell off to a .272/.325/.394 batting line with 16 home runs in 2024, although he was a Gold Glove finalist at third base. There would figure to be plenty of interest in the eight-time All-Star even as he's coming off a down season, although trade talks will be complicated since Arenado can essentially dictate his landing spot.
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Cardinals' Pedro Pages: Splitting catching duties
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Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak said Wednesday that Pages and Ivan Herrera will split catching duties next season, Katie Woo of The Athletic reports.
Willson Contreras will be a first baseman and designated hitter moving forward, clearing a path to playing time at catcher. Pages was the preferred option over Herrera down the stretch of the 2024 season while Contreras was hurt, mostly because he's viewed as a much better defender. The 26-year-old Pages slashed .238/.281/.376 with seven homers over 68 contests this past season.
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Cardinals' Ivan Herrera: Set to split time at catcher
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Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak said Wednesday that Herrera and Pedro Pages will share playing time at catcher next season, Katie Woo of The Athletic reports.
Willson Contreras is moving into a first base/designated hitter role, clearing the way for Herrera and Pages to handle catching duties. Herrera is much more intriguing of the two from an offensive standpoint, having slashed .301/.377/.417 in 85 games over the last two seasons with the Cardinals. However, his defense -- and particularly his throwing -- have drawn scrutiny, to the point that Pages leapt him on the depth chart down the stretch.
