Related
*Following story was posted before the deal became official at 9 p.m. Monday.
ST. LOUIS (KMOX) - It's not a done deal yet, but it became clear over the weekend that Nolan Arenado will in all likelihood be wearing a St. Louis Cardinals uniform this season.
The trade details are still in limbo, but both local and national reporters are doing their best to explain the "little intricacies that have to be approved." That's how St. Louis Post-Dispatch writer Derrick Goold explained it to KMOX.
Take a listen:
To summarize, here are the main details that either need to be approved or finalized by the teams, players and Major League Baseball:
- Deferred money: Essentially, what's being reported is that Arenado is taking a pay cut from the $199 million that he's still owed over the next six years of his current contract. Both Arenado and the MLB Player's Union must approve this part.
- No-trade/opt-out clauses: This is another aspect of the reported deal that Arenado himself must approve. First, he'll have to waive his no-trade clause and he's also reportedly going to get an extra opt-out clause after the 2022 season, on top of the one already in his contract after this season.
Related
- Exchange of money: This part of the deal has been getting the most reaction on Twitter, as Colorado is not only sending its best player to St. Louis, but also giving the Cardinals $50 million. It's obviously more complicated than that, but the exchange of money between teams is something the MLB commissioner himself has to approve, Goold says.
- Other players involved: This is the biggest unknown still. Who will the Cardinals be losing in this trade? The most common name reported is 27-year-old pitcher Austin Gomber, but on Monday afternoon, MLB Network reporter Jon Morosi says "four or five players" will be headed to Colorado.
- When will it be done? It won't be clear until after we hear from the parties involved, but this deal is something that has taken days to finalize – after first reports of the trade agreement came out last week. But who knows, maybe this has been in the works for weeks ... Goold says this may not be completely over until next week even. While MLB.com's Mark Feinsand tweeted earlier on Monday that a "source says the expectation is that it will be completed today." A tweet from Bob Nightengale of USA Today Sports says it will take "at least another day, if not longer."
© 2020 KMOX (Entercom). All rights reserved