The San Diego Padres have not been as active this offseason. The Padres signed Sung Mun-Song from the KBO, but the rest of their signings have been lackluster at best. With Luis Arraez being a free agent, San Diego has to fill a hole at first base. Whether that is done internally or through trade/free agency is yet to be determined. What we do know is that San Diego attempted to trade for third baseman Nolan Arenado.
The St. Louis Cardinals were shopping Arenado for the majority of 2025. Finally, the Cardinals were able to land a trade partner in the Arizona Diamondbacks. The Padres missed out on the Arenado sweepstakes, which was a trade that came cheaper than expected. But two key factors kept San Diego from acquiring the Gold Glove third baseman.
Per Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (subscription required), the Padres not only wanted to move Arenado to first base, but they also did not want to take on his salary. As a result, San Diego was unable to reach an agreement with Arenado and the Cardinals.
Padres Could Not Afford Nolan Arenado’s Salary
GettyManny Machado and others have large salaries with the Padres.
Arenado is owed $42 million over the next two seasons. That is one of the factors that made it so hard for St. Louis to find a trade partner. It is also the reason the return for the former Platinum Glove winner was a pitching prospect who has not thrown a pitch in pro ball. Still, the Diamondbacks are paying just $11 million of Arenado’s salary.
The Padres, even with the Cardinals eating a large part of his contract, were unwilling to pay that.
“The holdup, according to those briefed on the talks, was that the Padres were unwilling to take on as much of Arenado’s salary as the D-Backs,” Rosenthal wrote.
At the moment, San Diego has a few high-value contracts holding them back from making impact additions. Manny Machado is owed $31 million until he becomes a free agent in 2034. Xander Bogaerts and Michael King will both make around $25 million, while Fernando Tatis Jr is just over $24 million.
Per Spotrac, the Padres’ total cash payroll is the seventh-highest in the MLB. Adding Arenado to the mix would heighten that more than they wanted. In fact, San Diego is already over the second tier of the luxury tax, and the team seemed not to want to have to go much higher.
If San Diego wants to make another signing, they will have to be careful about their finances, which meant trading for Arenado was not in the cards.
Padres Wanted to Move Arenado Across the Infield
GettyThe Padres wanted Nolan Arenado to change positions.
The other factor of the Arenado trade was the third baseman’s no-trade clause. Arenado had to accept any trade offered, which gave him a lot of power to enter a situation he wanted to be in. The eight-time All-Star has played third base his whole career. San Diego wanted to move him to the opposite side of the infield.
Manny Machado has locked up the third base position for years to come. But the Padres have a hole at first base. They have some options internally, but none would be as good as Arenado. It is also fair to assume his defense would have been just as good at first base. But having him change positions could have been a reason for the deal not being made.
With Arenado no longer on the market, San Diego will have to shift their focus elsewhere. There are still quite a few first basemen left on the market, but it is more likely that the Padres look at players already on the roster for the position.
Padres’ Nolan Arenado Pursuit Fell Apart Over 2 Key Factors