Mar 5, 2025; West Palm Beach, Florida, USA; St. Louis Cardinals left feilder JJ Wetherholt (87) runs to second base against the Houston Astros during the second inning at CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches. Mandatory Credit: Rich Storry-Imagn Images Rich Storry-Imagn Images

JJ Wetherholt Prediction Will Excite Cardinals Fans

Originally posted on St. Louis Cardinals on SI
By Patrick McAvoy | Last updated Jan 3, 2026 1:24 PM ET

No matter what happens throughout the rest of the offseason, there are a few things to be very excited about for the 2026 Major League Baseball season when it comes to the St. Louis Cardinals.

The Cardinals are clearly resetting and that may not be great for the club's place in the National League Central standings, but what should get the fanbase excited is the possibility of No. 1 prospect JJ Wetherholt making the jump to the big leagues early on in 2026.

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Wetherholt, the No. 7 overall pick in the first round of the 2024 season, had a breakout year in 2025. The 23-year-old slashed .306/.421/.510 with a .931 OPS to go along with 17 homers, 59 RBIs, 23 stolen bases, and 28 doubles in 109 total games played across Double-A and Triple-A. Not too shabby for a prospect's first full professional season.

The Cardinals have one of baseball's best prospects

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With the Cardinals dealing veterans away, there should be an opening for Wetherholt in the infield, if he can earn a job out of Spring Training. The perception out there right now seems to be that he will have a shot at a job. For example, Joel Reuter of Bleacher Report predicted Opening Day starting lineups for each team and had Wetherholt in the mix for St. Louis.

"Projected Lineup: SS Masyn Winn, C Iván Herrera, 1B Alec Burleson, DH Nolan Gorman, LF Lars Nootbaar, RF Jordan Walker, 2B JJ Wetherholt, 3B Thomas Saggese, (and) CF Victor Scott II," Reuter wrote. "Quick Thoughts: This projected lineup assumes that both Nolan Arenado (Angels) and Brendan Donovan (Mariners) are traded, while outfielder Lars Nootbaar stays put for the time being. If that's how things play out, right-handed hitting Austin Hays could be a target to provide some balance to the outfield and give the team another potential trade chip.

"Top prospect JJ Wetherholt is expected to be given every opportunity to win a starting spot on the infield this spring after he hit .306/.421/.510 with 28 doubles, 17 home runs, 59 RBI and 23 steals in 109 games between Double-A and Triple-A in 2025."

If this projected lineup were to become a reality, that arguably would be a good thing for St. Louis. It would be very young, but if you have a lineup with Winn, Herrera, Burleson, Walker, Wetherholt, and Scott, that's a step in the right direction. Each of these six has an argument to be a part of the team into the future. St. Louis needs to fully lean into the reset to see what they have.

If Wetherholt is on the Opening Day roster, he will give the fanbase someone to be very excited about each and every game. This is what the fanbase should be pulling for.

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

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