Now that the 2026 MLB season has come to an end, it's important to revisit the Arizona Diamondbacks big move to go out and acquire Nolan Arenado.

This is a move that got a ton of talk around the league, as it seemed like there was no way Arenado was going to be worth what the D-backs had to pay him.

In the end, he was worth everything and more.

Arenado is on the books for only $6 million in 2027, so for him to perform as well as he did in '26, one can only imagine how valuable he's going to be to the team next season.

In retrospect, the St. Louis Cardinals still made the right call to trade him, and it's not like the Diamondbacks even made the playoffs, but they would've been much further out if Arenado wasn't in the picture.

On Jan. 13, 2026, Arizona cut a deal with St. Louis to bring in Arenado for 22-year-old right-handed pitcher Jack Martinez.

Martinez was the No. 243 overall pick by the D-backs in 2025, and he's fresh off a 93.2-inning season where he split time between A and A+.

The Texas native had a brutal 3-10 record this year to go along with a 4.61 ERA and 1.31 WHIP.

He struck out 121 batters and walked 51 in a year where 11 of the 72 hits he allowed were home runs.

There's clearly a lot of work left to do with Martinez, but he was the perfect trade candidate for Arizona as while he may eventually find his stride, this is a D-backs team that was trying to cash in on a current window, not have to wait another five years.

In terms of offseason moves going into the 2026 season, Bleacher Report's Joel Reuter called Arenado going to Arizona the No. 8 best move.

Sure, there were plenty of other trades or acquisitions that ranked ahead of him, but there was nothing quite like seeing Arenado decide he'd be fine leaving the Cardinals, a team he spent five seasons with, to come to Arizona.

Even at 35 years old, Arenado was still able to have a tremendous season. He was a 3.4 WAR player, which was the best he's had in a single season since 2022.

Overall, he slashed .255/.331/.475, and to say those numbers were vastly improved over his totals from 2025 would be a huge understatement.