Stop Being Cautious, The Cardinals Finally Have a REAL Star!

The Cardinals have been bleeding fans at Busch, and Bernie says the solution is staring them in the face: J.J. Wetherholt. If St. Louis wants buzz, ticket sales, and a real centerpiece for the rebuild, stop acting weird and market the kid like the star he is.

On this episode of The Bernie Show, Bernie breaks down why Wetherholt is ready right now, why the Cardinals should commit to him on Opening Day, and why comparing him to past “can’t-miss” disappointments is flat-out lazy.

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31 comments
  1. They are marketing common sense. The last several years the prospects have disappointed so they are not gonna hype JJ beyond his own good. Plenty of time to get hi on him when he actually performs at MLB level

  2. This kid has never been in a Major League batters box. Don't you think it's kinda unfair to start labeling him as the next "Mick?" Because they did this with Walker and Gorman. Hell, they did it with Brittlebar. MLB wanted him to be the next big thing with the commercials and his connection to Otani, and he turned up a mediocre ball player. Maybe, just maybe this organization learned from their mistakes of trying to rush these kids up for gimmicks and ticket sales and their doing the right thing by trying not to make this kid a side show? Because if he gets up here and can't hit a Major League curveball or a up and in fastball at this level all you media folks that are salivating, and have been for the last year will be the first one's to give him the same treatment you give Walker and Gorman now. For once, I can't blame them for being cautious with this kid. It's going to be a do nothing season anyway…….Let's at least get this one right for once?

  3. Intelligent video, Bernie!!!

    Largely concur with your analysis. However, this video of "Market him Now" should be a 2-part series followed by tomorrow's video "Sign him Now."

    If BDW2 wants the real marketing advantage and long-term upside benefits he needs to buy out his Pre-ARB, ARB and mutliple FA seasons with team options after that now and let Bloom offer a Jackson Chourio deal during spring training. Why not? The Brewers are already well above water in that deal based on Chourio's FanGraph production value at 3.0 mean bWAR over his first two seasons.

    The Royals are a cautionary tale of waiting to until after the first couple Pre-ARB seasons are completed to offer the 8 to 10 year deal on a mostly sure thing. Had they offered Bobby the same deal prior to his Pre-ARB1 season, like the Brewers did Chourio, the Royals likely save 160 million dollars.

    Bloom needs to commit to the future and Wetherholt is just that. To put another way, if there was ever a Cardinal prospect ever that you would offer a Chourio deal to prior to the Pre-ARB1 season would it not be J.J. And if you are not going to do it now, then just be honest and admit that even with Bloom and the new developmental staff, they do not have the confidence to dive into the deep end with their best pedigree prospect since Albert Pujols.

  4. Cardinals will fill seats if they play exciting , heads up baseball. Do not strike out 12 times a game, catch the ball, and know when to tag up on a fly ball, things they haven't done the past 3 seasons !

  5. Oh no, it sounds like they are going to change his swing, hahahaha! He is exactly the kind of player they are missing and he wants to make him like the rest who are not very good.

  6. I don’t mind them being conservative with Wetherholt. He still needs to find more power. And it’s always good seeing guys consistently hit over 300. More AAA Games won’t hurt him. Don’t want to see what they did with Walker.

  7. Disagree, though I think it’ll happen. Thousands of people aren’t going to go buy season tickets because Bloom says JJ will start. Maybe tens of people. Maybe he says. He basically said the right thing. We are excited about what JJ potentially brings to the team and he will have every opportunity to not only make the team but start on opening day. What will get people excited is he makes the team has a good or great start and you sign him and Masyn. Fans start getting excited about what these 2 bring and momentum will build

  8. Totally agree with the sentiment about JJ. Kid has star power for sure, obviously he has to prove it on the field.

    However, we have a star already that the team doesn’t seem interested in marketing.

    Masyn Winn is the heir apparent to Ozzie we have been waiting for since he retired. Just like Ozzie he is the best defensive player in baseball, he just won his first GG and will soon be winning platinum gloves.

    He makes spectacular plays on a regular basis, and throws the ball across the diamond at 100 MPH, also he plays with swag, something this team has been in dire need of for over a decade.

    It boggles my mind that he gets short shrift in this town, if you can’t enjoy watching him play defense then you need to have your head examined.

    People complain he can’t hit. Dude had 27 2B 9 HR and 51 RBI in an injury plagued season, and had literally one of the greatest defensive seasons ever (look it up).

    So what if he isn’t AROD on steroids, no one is, because he was on steroids.

    I hope the W boys can be a double play combination for the next ten years with us (I’m very optimistic about it).

    But Winn is already here, and a star, if JJ works out, then we will have two!

    Good stuff Bernie!

  9. Let him get his feet wet before going crazy with the promoting him as the next star player. The Cardinals were also certain Jordan Walker was going to be the next franchise player also.

  10. Bernie…ever heard of Anthony Volpe? the kid was supposed to be the next Derek Jeter…didnt age well. JJ hasnt even taken a major league at bat yet. he has A LOT to prove. he could be a bust.

  11. Jordan, yes, you were hitting the ball over the field, but analytics says you should be lunching the ball at this trajectory. Oh, now you're struggling to hit hit the ball, but analytics says this approach is the right one, so keep swinging for the fences kid.

  12. The answer is simple the Cardinals were sold the great next cardinals star for years. O’Neil was going to be a 30-30 guy the next great star Bader was going to be a star Carlson was going to be the next lance berkman and was not available in trades then Gorman was going to be the next Kyle schwarber and Jordan walker was going to be the next Dave Winfield. Bloom probably knows a lot of the fans don’t want to hear a lot of hype they want to see the guy actually do it before they believe it

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