Mar 7, 2026; Jupiter, Florida, USA; St. Louis Cardinals right fielder Joshua Baez (22) hits a home run in the second inning against the New York Mets at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jim Rassol-Imagn Images Jim Rassol-Imagn Images

Cardinals Spring Training Standout Emerges as ‘Real Threat’

Originally posted on St. Louis Cardinals on SI
By Patrick McAvoy | Last updated Mar 20, 2026 8:59 AM ET

If Joshua Báez continues to play like he has throughout the spring, he's going to get a chance with the St. Louis Cardinals in the not-so-distant future.

Now, that's not coming straight out of camp on Opening Day. He was already sent down to the minors, but he impressed before going down. Báez played in 10 games and slashed .333/.417/.762 with a 1.179 OPS. That's not all, though. He crushed three homers, drove in five runs, walked twice, stole a base and scored six runs. With the Cardinals up in the air in left field, Báez put himself in a position to be considered, although the club did eventually send the No. 4 prospect down.

He got another chance to show the baseball world what he can do on Thursday in front of a big audience, though. Báez batted third and was in the outfield for St. Louis in the Spring Breakout game. Overall, he finished the day 1-for-2 with a loud two-run shot in the fifth inning.

The young Cardinals slugger continues to impress

Jim Rassol-Imagn Images

Joshua Báez goes WAY DEEP in Spring Breakout! pic.twitter.com/dAKnHjFbwZ
— St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) March 19, 2026

Cardinals special advisor Jason Isringhausen certainly sounded pleased with the young outfielder's progression and even said that he's "turning into a real threat," as transcribed by MLB.com's Bill Ladson.

"Josh Báez is turning into a real threat. He did it in some big league games. He has done it in the back fields. I just hope the bat-to-ball skills continue. If he can do that — we know he has the power. He can run and throw. He has a lot of tools.”

He surprisingly put himself in the conversation for the majors in Spring Training. He did end up getting sent down, but his performance throughout Spring Training showed that his time is coming. He only added to that narrative on Thursday. When the regular season opens up, if he does well down in Triple-A and the Cardinals don't get a lot of offense out of their outfield, we certainly could end up seeing the young slugger in 2026.

This is one of the best parts of Spring Training. Sure, the biggest point of camp is getting the big leaguers ready for the season. But you also get glimpses of guys who can help at some point in the future. Báez surprised some people. Now, he's on the big league doorstep and just needs to keep the momentum down in Triple-A.

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

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