Colorado Rockies: 5 storylines we will be watching this decade

How long will the Rockies have Nolan Arenado at third base?

Patrick Saunders of The Denver Post had an excellent start to his Rockies Mailbag on New Year’s Day by laying out exactly what is happening with Nolan Arenado and those trade rumors that keep swirling.

Bottom line, Saunders doesn’t believe that Arenado will be traded before the season begins. However, that doesn’t mean that the All-Star third baseman will be in a Rockies uniform all season either.

I agree with him on both points. Arenado made little attempt to hide his frustration with last season’s losing record. The franchise has also done little to improve the team in the offseason with the mindset of bounceback seasons from many players seeming to be the strategy heading into 2020.

If the Rockies struggle early and things start going downhill, don’t be surprised if the Arenado trade rumors heat up with more intensity as we get closer to the trade deadline. If the Rockies finish with another losing record in 2020, you better believe there will be plenty of discussion with the opt-out clause after the 2021 season looming.

Remember though, that last paragraph had a lot of “ifs” in it. So will this one. If the Rockies play at a high level and if they make some moves to shore up the team at the deadline and if they compete like the 2017 and 2018 teams did, much of this talk could go away.

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Could Arenado be traded? Absolutely, for the right price and to the right team (remember, he has a no-trade clause as well so he could block a move).

Could Arenado opt out? Absolutely. With a new CBA coming and teams with deeper pockets than the Rockies out there, don’t be surprised if another franchise couldn’t match Arenado’s current deal.

Could Arenado stay in purple throughout the prime of his career? Absolutely. If the Rockies are winning and building the team in the right way, why wouldn’t he? More money could be available before next season with a new TV deal and the shedding of some high-priced contracts in the bullpen and lineup. If the Rockies can show Arenado before the end of next season they are building a strong core around him, staying in Colorado is a no-brainer.

What direction will things head? The start of this season could well determine the answer to that question. And, as we well know, there has been talk of a “50-50” chance the Rockies trade Arenado at some point.