If the St. Louis Cardinals still plan to trade third baseman Nolan Arenado this offseason, they now need to pivot.

The s Alex Speier reported Wednesday that the Cardinals were back at the bargaining table with the Boston Red Sox for a potential Arenado trade. However, several hours after that report, the Red Sox agreed to sign star infielder Alex Bregman to a three-year deal worth $120 million—thus likely putting an end to any Arenado-to-Boston rumors.

So, what's next? ESPN's Buster Olney suggested Thursday night that the NL Central rival Chicago Cubs are a "theoretical fit" for Arenado.

Of course, trading Arenado to a division rival—the Cubs, nonetheless—might be a difficult move for St. Louis to swallow.

Third base remains a position of need for the Cubs as spring training begins. As of Thursday night, Matt Shaw—the Cubs' first-round pick in 2023—is the front-runner to earn the starting third base role in camp. Although Shaw has raked in the minors—29 homers and a .906 OPS in 159 career games—he has no big league experience and has seen just 131 at-bats at Triple-A.

Shaw looks like he can develop into a future star, but trading for Arenado would give the Cubs a proven option at the hot corner in a season they need to bounce back from last year's 83–79 disappointment.

Arenado, an eight-time All-Star, has just been a slightly above-average hitter in the big leagues over the last two seasons. In 296 games in that span, Arenado has logged 42 homers and a .269/.320/.426 slash line, adding up to a 104 OPS+—just four points above league average (100 OPS+).

Arenado, 33, is due $21 million this season and is under contract through 2027. Back in December, he invoked the no-trade clause in his contract and nixed a deal with the Houston Astros.