ST. LOUIS -- If the opportunity arises for the Cardinals to upgrade their current roster, Cardinals ownership would take a sincere look, but chairman Bill DeWitt Jr. said on Monday that he doesn’t see a significant addition to the roster coming this offseason -- or that the team was “actively seeking” an impact trade.

On the final day of Winter Warm-Up, DeWitt reiterated to reporters what he said at the start of the offseason: He doesn’t see the payroll increasing much from where he projects it right now at $170 million. The Cardinals’ $174 million total payroll in 2019 ranked sixth in the Majors, according to Spotrac. DeWitt said the Cardinals ranked 11th in revenue last year.

“That’s a pretty strong payroll,” DeWitt said. “It’s pushing the envelope, to be honest. If there's great opportunity somewhere to move it up a little bit, we'd take a look at that.”

DeWitt’s comments about the payroll, as well as his comfort with the roster the Cardinals have in place now to start Spring Training in less than a month, decreases the likelihood of a reunion with free agent Marcell Ozuna on a multiyear deal and a trade for Rockies star third baseman Nolan Arenado, who the Cardinals have been linked to in the past. The Cardinals have remained in touch with Ozuna and his agent.

In other words, the Cardinals have the flexibility to add a little to the 2020 payroll, but the club does not want to go up a large amount. DeWitt was given the example of a $35 million salary, which is what Arenado will make in '20.

“That's not moving it up a little bit – that's moving it up a lot,” DeWitt said. “We really can't be in that kind of a range.”

DeWitt did not mention Arenado by name, but he said there would have to be some payroll subtraction if the Cardinals were to take on a salary in the $35 million range, like cash to offset the salary or moving other large contracts off the payroll. The Cardinals have around $150 million guaranteed to 13 players for 2020, including $7.25 million to left-hander Brett Cecil, who has been dealing with carpal tunnel syndrome and has not played in a Major League game since Sept. 25, 2018. The Cardinals also signed extensions with Paul Goldschmidt (five years, $130 million), Miles Mikolas (four years, $68 million) and Matt Carpenter (two years, $39 million) that will begin this year. All three have no-trade clauses.

Explaining further why there likely won’t be payroll growth this season, DeWitt pointed to the team’s $20 million mortgage on Busch Stadium and said capital expenditures have been $10 million.

DeWitt emphasized the Cardinals’ model in developing and relying on players in their system for improvement on the Major League team. Internal improvement, especially offensively, was the theme among coaches, players and front office this weekend at Winter Warm-Up.

“We’re always opportunistic, but we’re not out there actively to develop a trade or adding to the club necessarily at this point,” DeWitt said. “We don’t want to give up our top young players for a lot of talent there.

“We’re not averse to doing it. But given where we are, we have a good team and we want to maintain that and not sacrifice our future for a short-term fix. I’m not getting specific on any potential trade speculation, but just in general.”