Feb 27, 2026; Jupiter, Florida, USA; St. Louis Cardinals designated hitter JJ Wetherholt (77) rounds the bases after hitting a home run against the New York Mets during the fourth inning at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

Cardinals’ JJ Wetherholt Era Begins With Sky-High Expectations

Originally posted on St. Louis Cardinals on SI
By Patrick McAvoy | Last updated Mar 26, 2026 4:30 PM ET

At long last, St. Louis Cardinals baseball is here.

We no longer need to talk about the regular season as something weeks, days or even hours away. Baseball is back for the Cardinals and it will be here until September at the very least for St. Louis. With that being said, let's talk about JJ Wetherholt just a bit more as the season kicks off.

The Cardinals' No. 1 prospect grabbed headlines all offseason and throughout Spring Training and as he fought for a big league roster spot. He did what he needed to do. He had a .780 OPS and two homers throughout Spring Training to go along with a .386 on-base percentage. Now, his big league career has officially begun and the expectations are massive.

Former MLB general manager and current insider for The Athletic Jim Bowden predicted that Wetherholt is going to win the 2026 National League Rookie of the Year Award.

The Cardinals phenom has massive expectations

Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

"JJ Wetherholt of the Cardinals wins NL Rookie of the Year," Bowden wrote.

USA Today's Stephen Borelli had the same prediction for Wetherholt.

ESPN's Bradford Doolittle tabbed Wetherholt as the club's most likely 2026 award winner as well and pointed to the NL Rookie of the Year Award.

The hype is loud. Right now, FanGraphs has Wetherholt projected to slash .254/.340/.367 with 11 homers, 72 RBIs and 15 stolen bases in 136 games played. If he can live up to those projections, that likely would be enough to at least be in the conversation for the Rookie of the Year Award. If Wetherholt can win the award, he would be the first member of the organization to do so since Albert Pujols did all the way back in 2001.

Wetherholt is entering the 2026 season as the No. 5 overall prospect in baseball, per MLB.com. He very much looked the part throughout Spring Training. Now, the regular season is here. Spring Training and minor league stats no longer matter. Now, it's all about what he can do in St. Louis for this organization. If he can live up to the lofty expectations, St. Louis will quickly have one of the very best middle infields in baseball.

Masyn Winn is just 24 years old and was the best defensive shortstop in the National League in 2025. Plus, he's healthy now, which should help his bat. Wetherholt's bat is electric and his defense is solid. The expectations are high, but Wetherholt is the guy who can live up to them.

This article first appeared on St. Louis Cardinals on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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