Guardians Rumors: Guardians could be poised to take advantage of Cardinals retooling 

Earlier this week, we detailed how ESPN's Jeff Passan outlined Cardinals utility man Brendan Donovan stood out as a “perfect fit” for the Guardians.

He may not be the only Cardinal available this offseason who makes sense for Cleveland. 

Earlier this morning, The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal, Will Sammon and Katie Woo put out a report (subscription required) highlighting that the Cardinals are interested in offloading some of their veterans like Nolan Arenado, Sonny Gray, Donovan and Lars Nootbaar, among others. 

While Donvan is still the best fit of all of those players, all of them stand out as options who could help the Guardians win in 2026. 

The Cardinals have a variety of players who stand out as trade options for the Guardians

While the trio of Woo, Sammon and Rosenthal wrote that the Cardinals aren’t entering a “full-fledged rebuild,” the team listening to trade talks on their veterans is a change from how they’ve operated in years prior. 

The player at the top of that list is Arenado, has said that he would expand the list of teams that he would waive his no-trade clause for, and that the Cardinals would be willing to pay a significant portion of the $42 million he’s owed over the next seasons. 

Although he’ll be of no interest to the Guardians thanks to the presence of José Ramírez, the Cardinals being serious about trading Arenado shows how serious they are about trading the other players on the roster. 

One of those players is right-handed starter Sonny Gray, who is also open to waiving his no-trade clause. His contract likely puts him out of the Guardians’ price range (he’s owed $35 million next season), but he is a solid starter who should have plenty of suitors. 

The rest of the players they’re considering trading should interest them, however. 

Donovan still stands out as the top option, thanks to his positional versatility, left-handed bat and cheap price tag (he’s set to make just $5.4 million through arbitration). 

Although he missed the final six months of the season due to a groin injury, he underwent sports hernia repair surgery in October and is expected to be ready for spring training. 

The Athletic’s trio reported the Cardinals are seeking a cost-controlled starting pitcher and an experienced back-end reliever in trade talks, which is something the Guardians could offer. 

The first Guardian who comes to mind as a potential trade piece is left-handed starting pitcher Logan Allen, who could be the odd man out of Cleveland’s rotation in 2026. Allen’s never going to blow anyone away, but he’s a solid innings eater who would be the No. 3 starter in St. Louis. 

And, if Donovan’s not available for whatever reason, he could help them get Nootbaar or slugger Willson Contreras. 

Nootbaar has been a bit of a rising star since making his debut in 2021, but he’s coming off arguably his worst 162-game season (.234 batting average) and just underwent double heel surgery. 

Nootbaar still has two more seasons of arbitration remaining and can play right field, which would make him a valuable player on the Guardians’ roster. 

Although there are plenty of exciting options there for the Guardians in free agency and the trade market, the Cardinals’ options stand out as some of the top options.