Former Cardinals MVP Paul Goldschmidt agrees to join New York Yankees

Paul Goldschmidt now will look to produce a bounce-back season in the Bronx.

The former Cardinals cornerstone first baseman and 2022 National League MVP will put on the pinstripes as a member of the New York Yankees next season, according to a league source.

YES Network analyst Jack Curry first reported that Goldschmidt and the Yankees reached agreement on a one-year $12.5 million deal. The Yankees had not announced the deal as of Saturday afternoon, an indication that the deal likely is pending a physical exam.

The Post-Dispatch’s Derrick Goold previously reported the Yankees’ interest in signing Goldschmidt to fill their need at first base.

Goldschmidt, 37, became a free agent this offseason at the end of a five-year $130 million deal with the Cardinals. He has spent the better part of the past 14 seasons in the majors, and he earned seven All-Star selections, five Silver Slugger Awards, four Gold Gloves and an MVP.

His deal comes the day after the Houston Astros reportedly agreed to a three-year, $60 million deal with first baseman Christian Walker, who in 2019 succeeded Goldschmidt as first baseman for the Arizona Diamondbacks.

The Yankees also are among the teams that have expressed interest in acquiring Cardinals third baseman Nolan Arenado, who is on the trading block this winter as the Cardinals enter a “reset” of their major-league roster and organization.

Arenado, 33, has a no-trade clause in his contract that allows him to reject any potential deal the Cardinals might make to send him to another club.

Earlier in the week, a potential trade with the Astros fell apart because Arenado declined to waive his no-trade rights. At the time, the door appeared open for the clubs to revisit trade talks centered around Arenado, but the Astros pivoted and signed Walker.

The Yankees, who won the AL pennant and lost to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the World Series this year, possibly could look to reunite Goldschmidt and Arenado in the Bronx.

Arenado’s agent, Joel Wolfe, said during the MLB winter meetings this month that Arenado would have interest in joining a team that has the “throttle down” and where he believes he can jump right in and win right now.

While superstar outfielder Juan Soto signed a record-setting free-agent contract to leave the Yankees for the New York Mets this offseason, the Yankees added one of the top starting pitchers on the market in left-hander Max Fried on an eight-year deal.

The Yankees also acquired two-time All-Star relief pitcher Devin Williams from the Milwaukee Brewers as well as former National League MVP outfielder/first baseman Cody Bellinger from the Chicago Cubs.

Now, Goldschmidt’s addition might help make a trade to the Yankees more palatable for Arenado if the Cardinals and Yankees were able to reach an agreement.

The Cardinals acquired Goldschmidt from the Diamondbacks in December 2018. That deal sent catcher Carson Kelly, pitcher Luke Weaver, infielder Andrew Young and a 2019 competitive balance round draft pick to the Diamondbacks.

In six seasons with the Cardinals, Goldschmidt hit 153 home runs, collected 477 RBIs, compiled a batting average of .278 to go with a .360 on-base percentage and a .483 slugging percentage in 836 games. He registered 22.9 wins above replacement (WAR) according to Baseball-Reference.com’s method for calculating WAR.

During his MVP season, 2022, Goldschmidt batted .317 with a .404 on-base percentage and 35 home runs. He led the NL in slugging percentage (.578) and OPS (.981) that season. He also led the majors in fielding percentage.

This year, Goldschmidt led the Cardinals with 22 home runs. He hit much better in the final weeks of this season, but his batting average (.245), on-base percentage (.302) and slugging percentage (.414) fell well below his career averages of .289/.381/.510. His strikeout rate (26.5%) also reached it’s highest point since his rookie season.

Goldschmidt struggled through a dreadful first half offensively, with a slash line of .230/.291/.373 with 13 home runs through his first 92 games. In his last 62 games (61 starts) of the season, Goldschmidt slashed .271/.319/.480 with nine home runs.

“To say — I’m 37 now — that you’re going to be the same as when you’re 27, that’s just not the truth,” Goldschmidt said in September, after his final home game at Busch Stadium. “But you can still perform at that age, or at my age. We’ve seen guys do it. I’m confident that that’s not holding me back, but it’s part of what goes on in your career. As you get older, you’ve got to make adjustments and you’ve got to adapt.”

Goldschmidt, along with Arenado, served as the most accomplished and respected veteran position players in the Cardinals’ clubhouse since Albert Pujols and Yadier Molina retired at the end of the 2022 season.

With the Cardinals making room for younger position players to play more regularly in 2025, they decided to move on from Goldschmidt.

Willson Contreras, who also has a no-trade clause in his contract, is slated to move from catcher to first base next season.

Contreras playing first base and serving as designated hitter at times will allow young catchers Ivan Herrera and Pedro Pages to handle the duties behind the plate.

Post-Dispatch Cardinals beat writer Derrick Goold contributed to this report.