Cardinals Turn Away Mets' Trade Offers for First Baseman Alec Burleson

Still kicking themselves for passing on the chance to trade with the rebuilding St. Louis Cardinals and for Willson Contreras last offseason, the New York Mets checked in on the availability of first baseman Alec Burleson at the recent MLB GM meetings in Las Vegas, per a source.

Not surprisingly, the Cardinals rebuffed those trade offers from the Mets, and they have shown zero inclination in potentially trading for the player who led MLB in RBI with 116 in 2026.

The Cardinals and Mets discussed a deal that would have sent Contreras to the Big Apple last December, but New York was unwilling to meet the Cardinals’ demands for multiple highly ranked prospects coming back in return. The Mets, who needed a first baseman after allowing Pete Alonso to leave in free agency and sign with the Baltimore Orioles, then saw the Cards deal Contreras to the Boston Red Sox instead.

All those two players did this past season was become an All-MLB first-teamer at first base (Alonso) and All-MLB second-teamer at first base (Contreras). Alsonso hit 43 homers and drove in 113 runs in 161 games in his first season in Baltimore, while Contreras registered career-bests in homers (27) and RBI (81) in his first season in Boston.

Burleson, the target of the Mets’ affection this offseason, had a strong case that he should have been the first-team All-MLB first baseman from 2026. In his first full season at first base, Burleson became the first Cardinals player to lead MLB in RBI (116) in 55 years. He also smacked 37 doubles and 26 homers and led MLB in hits and doubles with runners in scoring position. Also, the left-handed Burleson was rated as the best MLB first baseman at receiving throws with his ability to scoop balls out of the dirt and stretch high into the air.

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Burleson’s work in 2026 should earn him a large raise for the 2027 season. He is projected to make approximately $8.3 million in salary arbitration in 2027 – a $5 million jump over what he made in 2026 following his first round of arbitration.

The Cardinals have salary control over Burleson through 2028 before he can become a free agent. Based off Burleson winning a Silver Slugger award in 2025 and leading MLB in RBI in 2026, the Cardinals would likely be wise to try and negotiate a long-term deal with Burleson where they buy out his final two years of arbitration for some long-term security. It would be similar to what the Cards did with standout rookie second baseman JJ Wetherholt, who signed an eight-year extension that could be worth as much as $132 million with no opt-out clauses for either the player or the organization.

Burleson, who has said repeatedly that he hopes to be a building block for the Cardinals going forward, certainly sounds like he would welcome the kind of long-term deal that would keep him in St. Louis.

“I love St. Louis and I love what’s going on here,” Burleson said in a November episode of the Cardinal Territory podcast. “The group of guys that will be here for a while, I want to be here for (that). I felt like I’ve been a small part of this whole process, and I want to be on the infield with (second baseman JJ Wetherholt) and (shortstop Masyn Winn). I want to be here for a long time.”