John Mozeliak's final offseason stays asleep under the St. Louis ice

Unless Nolan Arenado is suddenly moved, the former mastermind sleeps in the bed he made.

Joey Schneider/Fox 2

With pitchers and catchers reporting and the annual Winter Warm-Up taking place this weekend in St. Louis, the Cardinals’ plans remain as frozen as a south city street. All signs and media-garnered quotes point to the status of Nolan Arenado determining any movement or additions by the team this winter before spring training commences.

Arenado’s no-trade clause is the main culprit. While it would be nice to take extra shots at John Mozeliak and Bill DeWitt Jr. for the beleaguered clause holding things up, it’s difficult to trade for, sign, or extend a player of his status without such a clause. It sucks and probably could have been avoided, but that’s the state of affairs right now for a team whose rebuild carries the same speed of Matt Reeves’s The Batman sequel. The Cardinals may be a playoff team by the time that movie finally sees theaters.

They still look like a car accident being slowly cleaned up on the highway, and the people stuck in traffic are the fans. We lean left and right, poke our heads out the window to get a clean look at what’s happening, but the clues are scattered. For a team wanting to shed old habits and create a new identity, it’s going to be a staggered release schedule for the vital parts of the rebuild to show results.

For example, Sonny Gray couldn’t be moved earlier this offseason due to the fact that he also has a no-trade clause in his three-year contract. Three is also the number of years left on Arenado’s contract, so both players hold the dice in relation to their futures. Sure, the team could have moved Willson Contreras, but they will need to score runs in 2025 to carry a pulse so he stays. Ryan Helsley is the biggest piece of juicy pie not to take his talents elsewhere, and that could be due to timing or the team shrugging their shoulders at the idea of moving a 49-save closer just to move him.

They’re in a waiting room unless Arenado’s mind changes and that moment merges with a team showing enough interest to make a deal. Hopes and dreams aren’t exactly included in an acquisition for the ten-time Gold Glove infielder, but he isn’t an easy sell. 2024 showed a drastic plummet in his offensive performance, and the near 3.0 WAR leaned more on his rehabilitated defense. Asking a team to take that salary on with him flying into his mid-30s is a floor or two short of a magic trick.

Due to illogical construction-the architect lost his way-the front office is at the mercy of the big salaries they brought in to resemble a winner. Instead of acquiring a Gray type a year or two earlier, they shoved over $70 million into three players in a 2024 season that went south quickly. They can preach the youth movement, but you’ll still have an older starting roster in April.

Gray is 35. Arenado will be 35 this year. Contreras will be 33 in May. That’s three cornerstones of your rebuilding roster. Well, it’s sort of coming together. Masyn Winn, Alec Burleson, Ivan Herrera, Pedro Pages, Jordan Walker, Michael Siani, Victor Scott II, and maybe Nolan Gorman should see significant playing time this summer. The latter depends on Arenado’s movement or lack thereof--something Mozeliak openly acknowledged at the Warm-Up.

Although, following the Arenado shutdown of a Houston trade, Mozeliak sounds like a defeated guy waiting on outside chess pieces to fall into place. Remember when he shrewdly proved that there was no mystery team in the Matt Holliday contract discussions with Scott Boras. A decade or so ago, he was a beast. These days, he looks like a guy with one foot out the door.

Mozeliak may be willing to take the blame so new guy Chaim Bloom doesn’t have to, but most fans seem to want him gone now. I’m in that group. Like his struggles with unloading salary at the moment, it’s a contract that stipulates he have control over the 2025 proceedings: His own, which ends when the upcoming season reaches its end. It’s not like he’s able to do much. With the lack of an Arenado move keeping other potential moves in handcuffs, all Mo can do now is look at a shrinking payroll, stadium grosses, and level of interest with his usual poker face gaze.

This is your bed, dude. I hope you’re enjoying the final sleep in it. With more sports fans in St. Louis watching the Kansas City Chiefs these days, a stark contrast to when he first took over as general manager, Mozeliak won’t see as much flack this season as his time atop the Cardinals concludes. Fans are still fed up with him; they either don’t seem to care as much or they’re resigned to the fact that the Mo Knows era is finally coming to an end.

(Harry Doyle voice) THANK GOD!