Chicago Cubs: Nolan Arenado in St. Louis would be a nightmare

Five years ago, the Chicago Cubs de-throned the St. Louis Cardinals in the division but after 2019 and with the latest rumors, that could change again.

While nothing exciting has been brewing within the Chicago Cubs front office, one particular Colorado Rockies standout continues to draw wide-ranging interest. Of course, Chicago has been linked to Nolan Arenado, who seems to be the most prized name available following the free agent shake-up this winter.

Last season, St. Louis added some much-needed power to their roster by acquiring first baseman Paul Goldschmidt from Arizona. This trade helped the Cardinals reclaim their spot at the top of the National League Central.

As if that wasn’t nerve-racking enough, Cincinnati has been making some impressive transactions of their own. Thankfully, we can’t say much about Pittsburgh.

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At least, not yet. For now, we’ll focus on the possibility of the reigning Central champs going all-out in what could make the Cubs the little brother in this historic rivalry yet again.

According to Ken Rosenthal, St. Louis (along with Rangers) are among teams interested in acquiring Nolan Arenado’s services. That’s troublesome news considering the Cardinals once entertained the idea of potentially working out a trade for Arenado just a few seasons ago.

Outside looking in

This organization will not attempt to turn the tables by picking up Arenado at any point in the near or distant future. So, that decision still allows St. Louis to deliver a knockout blow all while attempting to bring back Marcell Ozuna who prefers a return to the Cardinals.

Picture this lineup for a brief moment and tell me if it doesn’t concern you at all; Dexter Fowler, Goldschmidt, Harrison Bader, Kolten Wong, Yadier Molina, Paul DeJong, Ozuna and Arenado all on the diamond at the same time.

That lineup itself has enough talent to produce several trips to the postseason and one or two World Series titles. Meanwhile, Chicago is hoping to silence critics by using the talent they have under contract following the departures of Nicholas Castellanos, Joe Maddon and Ben Zobrist.

Despite Castellanos only spending the second half of 2019 in Chicago, he helped provide a spark to this offense by hammering 16 home runs and driving in 46 runs. While Arenado sure seems like an absolutely pipe dream for the Cubs, a minor miracle allowing them to clear enough room to sign Castellanos to a multi-year deal could still happen.

It just comes down to what this front office wants to do, if they even want to make such a move at all. Either way, St. Louis being linked to Arenado a few years after their initial interest should raise some concerns for Theo Epstein.

Hopefully, like before, nothing comes of this rumor and Arenado finds a place to call home somewhere other than the NL Central. This would at least allow the Cubs to keep up with St. Louis heading into 2020 and beyond.

Unless they manage to pull off another blockbuster trade or signing, then moves desperately need to be made to keep the ship from sinking.