Reds just found the trade blueprint they’ve been looking for thanks to Nolan Arenado

The St. Louis Cardinals have been shopping Nolan Arenado for the better part of a year, and on Tuesday, finally found a taker. The Cardinals agreed to a deal with the Arizona Diamondbacks that will send Arenado (and a lot of cash) to the desert in exchange for pitching prospect Jack Martinez.

Arenado is coming off a down-year in St. Louis, and the Cardinals are in the midst of a rebuild. The eight-time All-Star is the latest player to be shipped out of the Gateway City, joining Sonny Gray and Willson Contreras, both of whom were dealt to the Boston Red Sox earlier this winter.

In a strange way, however, this trade could greatly benefit the Cincinnati Reds as they're looking to add another bat to the roster this offseason. Cincinnati has long been interested in another fallen star — Chicago White Sox outfielder Luis Robert Jr. — and the Cardinals may have just given the Reds the blueprint to get a deal done.

The Nolan Arenado trade just paved the way for the Reds to strike a deal with the White Sox for Luis Robert Jr.

Arenado is under contract for two more seasons and is owed $42 million, but given his age and lack of production last season, no team was going to take on the entirety of that contract. According to Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic, the Cardinals deal with the Diamondbacks includes $31 million in cash. The D-backs will only owe Arenado $5 million this year and $6 million in 2027.

In other words, if the White Sox are serious about shipping Robert out of Chicago, they're going to have to chip in a lot of cash. After picking up Robert's $20 million team-option this offseason, Chicago was hoping to land a prospect-laden return in exchange for the former All-Star. But this deal between the Cardinals and D-backs effectively set the market — and it's very low.

Making a trade for Robert — especially with the high price tag Chicago attached to him — was always risky. But if the Reds could send a low-to-mid level prospect to the Southside in exchange for Robert and about $15 million in cash considerations, the two sides should work out a trade today.

When Chicago finally comes to realization that St. Louis' return for Arenado is about as good as they can hope for in exchange for Robert, the White Sox will finally be able to make a deal. The Reds are likely waiting for that to happen, and the Cardinals trade with the D-backs may have just accelerated the process.