Cardinals' Nolan Arenado: Free of 2020 left shoulder issue

Arenado feels completely recovered from the nagging left shoulder injuries that led to his subpar 2020 season, Zachary Sliver of MLB.com reports.

The ultra-consistent slugger scuffled to a .253 average and .303 on-base percentage across 201 plate appearances during the abbreviated 2020 campaign, and he was ultimately shut down by the Rockies eight days prior to the conclusion of the regular season with left AC joint inflammation and a left shoulder bone bruise. The offseason took care of that pair of issues, and Arenado, who'd played no fewer than 155 games in any of the previous five seasons, views the health hiccup as a "blip." Expectations are naturally high for the veteran ahead of the 2021 season considering he averaged 39.8 home runs, 124.2 RBI and a .937 OPS from 2015-19 while providing Gold or Platinum Glove defense at third base.