Arenado returns from IL with bat ready, St. Louis tenure on his mind

ST. LOUIS -- Nolan Arenado looked happy and healthy again on Monday, drilling a run-scoring single early in the game, hammering a rally-starting double late and playing a flawless third base defensively.

While he was clearly delighted to be playing his first MLB game since July 30 because of a strained right shoulder, Arenado was also candidly realistic about what could be coming for both him and the rebuilding Cardinals in the offseason.

“It seems like that's where this organization is headed,” Arenado said after the 11-6 loss to the Reds. “Whatever, but what's best for me is probably to come back healthy and show that I'm hitting the ball hard.

“But I think what this organization is heading toward is young players and letting them go [with playing time]. That just comes with the territory, and I see it.”

Arenado, who will turn 35 years old early next season, said that being back and playing well reminded him of the joy he feels playing the game that has fulfilled his every dream. Though his numbers from his injury-interrupted 2025 might say otherwise, Arenado feels that he can be a middle-of-the-order producer for a contending team -- should he and the Cardinals find a suitable trade partner in the offseason.

Stressing his desire to play for a contending team in the latter years of his career, the Cardinals tried trading Arenado to the Astros last December. However, the eight-time All-Star used the no-trade clause in his contract to block the deal because of his concerns about Houston trading Kyle Tucker and letting Alex Bregman leave in free agency.

Should a similar opportunity come along with a contending team this offseason, Arenado said he might be more inclined to move on because of the Cardinals' shift toward rebuilding.

“As you get older -- and this year with the injuries and performance things it hasn’t gone the way I liked -- but I just don’t feel like I’m done,” said Arenado, who has slashed .238/.296/.370 with 10 homers, 16 doubles and 44 RBIs in 97 games. “I feel like I’ve still got a lot of good ball left in me.”

Arenado, who sprained a finger and ultimately strained his shoulder during the last days of June and in early July, spent three weeks working at the Cards' Spring Training headquarters in Jupiter, Fla. He then played four games last week with Double-A Springfield to prepare for his return. Wanting to show that he is healthy and capable of driving balls again, Arenado said he hopes to play in all 11 of the games remaining for the Cardinals. On Monday, he lined a single into left-center in his first at-bat to plate Willson Contreras, who had doubled. Later, Arenado led off the seventh inning with a double that sparked a two-run rally.

The 10-time Gold Glover also shined in the field defensively. His sliding, back-handed stop of Santiago Espinal’s grounder in the ninth inning was vintage Arenado -- even though he had missed the Cards’ previous 40 games.

“He made that really [nice] play that saved a couple more runs, even though we were already down and he did a really nice job at third -- something he’s done all year,” said Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol, who didn’t have co-closers JoJo Romero and Riley O’Brien and setup man Matt Svanson available on Monday because of their heavy workloads in Milwaukee over the weekend.

“[Arenado] swung the bat well and drove in that run. I’m really happy to see him back in the lineup.”

When he went on the injured list on Aug. 1, Arenado said his injured shoulder was affecting him primarily with his swing and sapping his power. He said his swing returned quicker with some rest, but his usually powerful throwing arm suffered from the time away. Throwing the ball proved to be his final hurdle to getting back. He went through a long-toss session in the outfield before Monday’s game to remind himself that his arm was sound enough to return to action for the Cardinals.

“I wouldn’t sit here and say my arm is … it doesn’t hurt, but it’s just not 100 percent with my strength,” Arenado admitted. “I can still make the good throws, but I’ve got to keep working through it, playing catch every day and get my strength again. But as far as pain goes, there was no pain, so that’s nice.”