Sep 20, 2025; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; St. Louis Cardinals third baseman Nolan Arenado (28) hits a one run single against the Milwaukee Brewers during the fourth inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

Cardinals Might Already Have Nolan Arenado Replacement

Originally posted on St. Louis Cardinals on SI
By Patrick McAvoy | Last updated Sep 23, 2025 2:32 PM ET

The St. Louis Cardinals have one of baseball's best prospects in JJ Wetherholt and it's going to be interesting to see whether or not the front office gives him a chance in the majors quickly in 2026.

Wetherholt has had an incredible run through the Cardinals' farm system this year. Overall, he has played in 109 games and is slashing .306/.421/.510 with 17 home runs, 59 RBIs, 23 stolen bases, 28 doubles, and two triples. He began the season with the Double-A Springfield Cardinals and was promoted to the Triple-A Memphis Redbirds. What's impressive about Wetherholt is that he has performed better after his promotion. In Triple-A, he has slashed .314/.416/.562 with 10 home runs, 25 RBIs, nine stolen bases, and 14 doubles in 47 games.

The Cardinals have one of baseball's best prospects

Brett Davis-Imagn Images

He's played so well, that there has been a clamoring for his promotion to the big leagues for a bit now. But, with the season winding down and plenty of infielders in the big leagues, that's not likely at all. But, we may have an idea about where he will play in 2026, though. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch's Derrick Goold shared a column talking about third base if the Cardinals trade Nolan Arenado and shared that Wetherholt will at least be looked at as an option.

"The Cardinals are motivated to either trim or reallocate payroll as Chaim Bloom takes over as president of baseball operations and also free up an infield spot for a young player," Goold said. "Which young player becomes the next question. Really feels like it’s still wide open for discussion – and competition. The Cardinals gave Nolan Gorman the slugger’s share of playing time at third while Arenado was on the injured list. Other options for the position include Brendan Donovan, who won his Gold Glove Award in 2022 in part because of his superb play at third; Thomas Saggese, who is currently starting at shortstop; and top prospect JJ Wetherholt.

"The Cardinals had Wetherholt start playing third base recently for Class AAA Memphis, where he’s mostly started at shortstop. If the Cardinals are able to trade Arenado they’ll consider third base as a spot for Wetherholt to make his big-league debut in 2026."

If things go well, it seems at least likely we will see Wetherholt in St. Louis in 2026.

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

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