With the Boston Red Sox ending the Alex Bregman sweepstakes late Wednesday night, their division rival, the New York Yankees, are expected to be in hot pursuit of St. Louis Cardinals third baseman Nolan Arenado. According to Cardinals beat writer John Denton of MLB.com, trade talks for Arenado between the Yankees and Cardinals are expected to “ramp up” in response to Bregman winding up in Boston.

Arenado has been floated on the trade block for the entire offseason, and it seems evident that his time as a member of the Cardinals will be over prior to Opening Day. Arenado will have the final decision in any trade that is agreed to, as he has a no-trade clause in his contract, meaning he will have to approve of a trade. He has already declined to waive it once this offseason, as the Cardinals had a deal with the Houston Astros that sent Arenado to Houston, but he did not want to play there, so he declined the trade.

The Yankees signed former Cardinals first baseman Paul Goldschmidt earlier this offseason, and he could play a significant role in getting Arenado to waive his no-trade clause and become a member of the Yankees if a deal is reached. If the Yankees were to acquire Arenado, they would move Jazz Chisholm Jr. back to his natural position of second base, and their infield defense could become much better than it was in 2024.

The Yankees aren’t the only team to watch out for though, as just this morning, MLB Network’s Jon Morosi said that the Detroit Tigers are a second team to watch in the Arenado sweepstakes. Ultimately, it is up to Arenado to decide where he would like to play, and it seems that it would be hard to turn down an opportunity to play for the Yankees and reunite with Goldschmidt, and help the Bronx Bombers try and win their first World Series since 2009.