The St. Louis Cardinals, who traded away a bevy of talent and All-Star appearances this offseason, are out to a surprising 2-0 start on the young season.
Part of the reason why? The play of top prospect JJ Wetherholt, who made the roster out of spring training. That decision is paying instant dividends, as Wetherholt is 3-for-9 in the early going with a home run and four RBIs.
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His walk-off single on Saturday lifted the Cardinals to a 6-5 win over the Tampa Bay Rays at Busch Stadium.
It also made franchise history not seen in 41 years, as noted by Sarah Langs of MLB.com:
JJ Wetherholt is the second Cardinals player with a walk-off hit in his first or second MLB Game in at least the divisional era (1969), joining:
6/22/85 Curt Ford
Ranked as the No. 5 prospect in baseball by MLB Pipeline, Wetherholt is set to be the best part of this rebuild season for Cardinals fans. His call-up and growth represent hope for a franchise that has missed the playoffs for three consecutive seasons.
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In addition to him, the Cardinals have top 100 prospects Liam Doyle (33), Rainiel Rodriguez (36), Joshua Baez (85), Jurrangelo Cijntje (89), and Leo Bernal (96) waiting in the wings. Baez, Cijntje and Bernal figure to be up this year while Doyle could be as well.
A first-round pick of the Cardinals in 2024, Wetherholt played his college ball at West Virginia. He hit .306 between Double-A and Triple-A a season ago, helping him get fast-tracked to the big leagues this season.
While it’s obviously early, Wetherholt is a clear contender for the National League Rookie of the Year. By extension, he could help the Cardinals earn another top draft pick. They already have six picks inside the Top 100 this July. That’s the most of any team in baseball.
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St. Louis Cardinals shortstop JJ Wetherholt (26) hits a walk-off two run single against the Tampa Bay Rays during the tenth inning at Busch Stadium. Jeff Curry-Imagn Images
And while thinking about draft picks isn’t necessarily the most thing for Cardinals fans, it should further the hope for the future. New baseball ops leader Chaim Bloom had great drafting success with the Boston Red Sox, selecting top prospects like Marcelo Mayer and Roman Anthony while he ran the franchise.
He also traded for two-time Gold Glover Wilyer Abreu, giving Cardinals fans more hope that he can hit on some of the trade returns for Brendan Donovan, Sonny Gray, Willson Contreras and Nolan Arenado.
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The Cardinals and the Rays will play again on Sunday afternoon at 1:15 p.m. CT. Steven Matz (TBR) pitches against Dustin May.
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