Nolan Arenado opens up about emotional curtain call and fan support

Nolan Arenado was not short on support during the St. Louis Cardinals' home opener against the Minnesota Twins on Thursday at Busch Stadium. This comes after an offseason where the franchise tried to trade the veteran third baseman. A deal with the Houston Astros was almost done before Arenado nixed it.

When Arenado's name was announced in the starting lineup, the Cardinals fans gave him a huge standing ovation. The third baseman also reciprocated the faith in him by homering in the 5-3 win.

Talking about it during an interview with Tamar Sher, Arenado said:

"I took it all in and I usually don't, but today I did. And, you know, the way they cheered for me, it meant a lot to me and got me motivated. I was just fortunate to give them something to cheer about again also, so, you know, I just want to thank them for that. It meant a lot to me and my family. It was a really cool day," Nolan Arenado said.

Arenado also mentioned that he was not expecting a curtain call.

"I wasn't expecting a curtain call," Arenado added. "I was actually surprised I got it. I don't think I got one last year, so it felt good to get one this year. It started off good. Puts a pretty nice bow on it, to be quite honest."

Nolan Arenado leads Cardinals to 5-3 win on Opening Day

MLB: Minnesota Twins at St. Louis Cardinals - Source: Imagn

Nolan Arenado did struggle last season, but if the first game of the 2025 MLB regular season is anything to go by, maybe the third baseman is set for a bounce-back season.

Arenado helped seal the deal for the Cardinals by adding an insurance run in the bottom of the eighth inning to extend their lead to 5-3. Facing Twins reliever Griffin Jax, the third baseman took him deep for a 376-foot home run in left field. Talking about the home run, Arenado said:

"Well, I was just happy I got to that guy's heater. He's a really good pitcher, and, you know, I was just trying to battle there. I had a short path to the ball, and that's when I'm usually good—when I'm pulling the ball in the air—and I was able to do it there."

Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol also heaped praise on the veteran. The manager said:

"I mean, this is a guy that's worked really hard this offseason to come back and show what he's capable of doing and what he's done for a very long time. So that homer, it's a big homer—it's probably more meaningful than people think."

Playing in the cleanup spot, Nolan Arenado finished the game with two hits off four plate appearances.