Cardinals Slugger Emerging Into Superstar Before Our Eyes

The St. Louis Cardinals made a very bold decision with Paul Goldschmidt this winter. They opted to let the veteran slugger walk in free agency and he's putting together a breakout season with the New York Yankees.

But the Cardinals made this decision because of one man: catcher Iván Herrera.

The Cardinals let Goldschmidt leave so they could slide starting catcher Willson Contreras to first base while opening up the catchers spot for Herrera. This was quite a bold decision to make considering Herrera hadn't proved much at the big league level, but it's paying off in a huge way already.

Not only has Herrera looked decent defensively, but he's slugging with the best of them. Through about 100 plate appearances, he's slashing .359/.429/.628 with five home runs and 17 runs scored. He's among baseball's leaders in Batting Run Value, per Baseball Savant, despite not having enough at bats to qualify.

The young slugger has shown great power. Not only has he smashed a few long home runs to the pull side, but he's hit two home runs to right center field, too. His bat speed is among the elite in the game while his xBA and xSLG are also well above what many expected.

Herrera seems to be emerging as the next great St. Louis slugger and he's doing so before our eyes. The Cardinals made the bold decision to ride with him behind the dish while letting Goldschmidt leave in free agency. This decision is paying off tremendously.