Six Takeaways From the St. Louis Cardinals’ 2025 Season

Across five seasons, Arenado slashed .266/.322/.456 with 118 home runs, three All-Star appearances, a third-place MVP season, and two Gold Glove awards. His 2022 season was the high mark and the only time he surpassed a 115 wRC+ in a season while wearing a Cardinals uniform.

It’s time for a change. Time to turn the page. The departure of Mozeliak will likely lead to other changes, as well. There have been rumblings of Brendan Donovan, Alec Burleson, Lars Nootbaar, and other core pieces being on the trade block, as well.

I think that’s the right move. The Cardinals have talent, but they don’t have a superstar. Ivan Herrera could become a star, but he’s still working his way there. Fielding a team with a bunch of good, not great, players limits the ceiling. I expect a busy winter in St. Louis.

2. Jordan Walker Cannot Be on the Team in 2026

The way the Cardinals have handled Jordan Walker‘s career has been unusual at every turn. Switching his position right before the 2023 season, at age 21, only to demote him for a stretch when he was still playing well, all things considered. Not giving him much run in 2024. Then watching him struggle day in and day out this year. Not to mention the mechanical changes.

Yes, he’s only 23 years old and can still turn it around. However, I think that will have to be in a different organization. A fresh start and clean slate is probably the best for both parties. Walker simply hasn’t shown enough to prove the current situation is going to get better.

Let me be clear – this isn’t only on the organization. Walker is the one swinging the bat, which he particularly loves to do on pitches outside of the zone. His approach and swing decisions have to be better, and that starts with the player. Trade him to a rebuilding team, get something back in return, and move past this ugly marriage.

3. Matt Svanson Is a High-Leverage Arm

The Cardinals acquired Matt Svanson in a 2023 trade with the Blue Jays for Paul DeJong. The 6-foot-5 righty comes with a 97+ mph sinker and a sweeper that keeps batters uncomfortable in the box. The movement profile jumped at times this season, and with more development, it could settle into a plus sweeper.

His sinker is his bread and butter. Batters hit only .150 off the pitch this season and slugged a lousy .215. He uses the pitch to get back into counts, and batters’ inability to square it up allows him to enter the zone when he needs a strike and often settles for a groundball out.

If he can improve his cutter, which is a nice change of pace at 92 mph, he’ll have an arsenal that will help him have a chance to earn the closer’s role. Either way, I think the Cardinals found a bullpen arm they can rely on next year.

4. Too Many Complementary Pieces

The average baseball fan can take a quick glance at the Cardinals roster and find themselves saying with a shrug, “Yeah, he’s a pretty good player.” But how many times do you say, “That guy can be a game-changer”?

Several of this year’s core players do something well but also struggle in an area that offsets, at least to an extent, their best attributes. Victor Scott II is a phenomenal defender and a player I’d be fine with batting ninth. But, only on a team that has enough above-average players elsewhere. St. Louis doesn’t.

As much as I enjoy watching Masyn Winn play, his bat is unlikely to drive offense. Another phenomenal defender and player I’d want on my team, but the more of those profiles you have, the more pressure it puts on getting a few impact bats.

The list goes on. Of the Cardinals with over 250 plate appearances, only three had an OPS over .700: Herrera (stud), Willson Contreras, and Burelson. Burelson is a poor defender and platoon bat with solid, but not outstanding power. Another player I like but…well, you know.

5. The Future Rotation Did Not Stand Out

Matthew Liberatore, Andre Pallante, Michael McGreevy, Tekoah Roby, Tink Hence, and Quinn Mathews have all been discussed as part of the Cardinals’ next wave of pitchers, some with more time than others to figure it out.

Pallante did not snowball his promising season from last year and landed with a 5.31 ERA and 4.69 FIP. He’s looking more like a swing guy than someone you want starting every fifth day. Liberatore had his moments and is a legitimate big league arm, but likely a back-end starter.

Matthews couldn’t throw a strike and Hence lost the season due to injury, while McGreevy and Roby both showed flashes, but did not exactly make you feel like they are sure-fire frontline options. There’s plenty of time for these young arms to figure it out, and they come with high ceilings, but overall, I felt like no one made massive strides.

6. JJ Wetherholt Is a Reason to Get Excited

Oh wow, going out on a limb saying to get excited about the seventh overall pick! Bold, I know. But what we saw from JJ Wetherholt handling Double-A the way he did and not slowing down once he reached Triple-A should get you excited about seeing him in a Cardinals uniform next season.

The power jumped once he got to Triple-A, which is uncommon; he went from a .166 to .249 ISO and hit 10 home runs across 47 games. The bat will absolutely play from day one, and his approach, along with his swing decisions, show me he is ready for Opening Day.

Once he reached Triple-A, he started to see more time at third and less time at second. I’d imagine the Cardinals see him as the natural replacement for Arenado, as Wynn will hold down short for the foreseeable future.

Final Thoughts

I expect we see a very different Cardinals team in 2026. The hypothetical Lars Nootbaar breakout never came, and he could be moved. The next great star, Jordan Walker, didn’t pan out. The Sonny Gray ace era is all but over. And you know what, it’s time. Time for a change and time for the Cardinals to try something different.

I’m not saying they have to abandon the brand that they have built over the last two decades. But abandoning a few of their ancillary players is a reasonable direction.

The city of St. Louis is a proud baseball town, and rightfully so. The history they have built is up there with the best in the league. However, when your best player by fWAR, Brendan Donovan, has the lowest total since 1903, something has to change. In some ways, I think Cardinals fans will welcome that change, as well.