It happened, folks.

It really, really happened.

Just two years removed from Paul Goldschmidt becoming a member of the St. Louis Cardinals, they committed highway robbery in a trade with the Colorado Rockies, acquiring Nolan Arenado and cash considerations for a pool of prospects.

Goldy and Arenado on the same team?

Fire and brimstone coming down from the skies… rivers and seas boiling… forty years of darkness… earthquakes, volcanoes… the dead rising from the grave… human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together… mass hysteria!

Ok, maybe not THAT crazy, but still crazy nonetheless.

What’s even more exciting… Arenado wants to be in St. Louis for the long haul.

“I plan on sticking around. So, that’s my goal,” Arenado said in his introductory conference on Tuesday. “I plan on staying here for a long time. I’ve said that once in Colorado, but truly — I mean it. I expect to be here a long time. I’m not worried about that.”

Despite not being to the Fall Classic since 2013, the Cardinals have still consistently been a postseason contender, and that is something the former Rockies’ star admires.

“You know how good they are, the winning tradition they have behind them and the great players that have come through this organization,” Arenado says. “I admire the way they’ve won consistently. And they’re so good.”

All off-season, the Cardinals remained silent. They were the only team not to sign a notable free agent, instead focusing on re-signing players such as Alex Reyes and Harrison Bader. Meanwhile, Adam Wainwright and Yadier Molina were getting offers from other teams, putting the status of the two longest-tenured Cardinals in jeopardy in regards to staying with the team.

But Mo knows. At least, sometimes.

John Mozeliak re-signed Wainwright to a one-year, $8 mil. deal, all but guaranteeing Molina’s return after the Caribbean Series concludes (they were destined to go to the same team). And with that ordeal out of the way, all attention focused on Arenado.

Mozeliak said the process made him feel “nauseous”, and rightfully so, as the negotiations went back and forth. Added in the mess was the complicated structure of Arenado’s contract in the first place, starting with enticing Arenado to waive his original no-trade clause.

Player-wise, the Cardinals are sending LHP Austin Gomber, INF Mateo Gil, INF Elehuris Montero, RHP Tony Locey, and RHP Jake Sommers to the Rockies. Cardinals beat writer Jeff Jones reported on Monday how the money sent to the Cardinals will be broken down:

*$15 mil. will be Arenado’s 2021 salary
*$20 mil. will be held as deferment to be paid to Arenado in future; which means it will be sent to STL if he doesn’t opt out, OR paid directly if he does opt out (which he can, but probably won’t)
*$16 mil. will cover the new contract year

To put it in a nutshell: in the grand scheme of things… the Cardinals didn’t give up much, the Rockies gave up a lot, and Arenado plans to be a Cardinal for a long time.

And that is something Cardinals fans can really look forward to.

(Photo credit: ESPN)