The St. Louis Cardinals' prized pick in the 2024 MLB Draft is already turning heads with his hot start to spring training — and making management feel a little better about life if their Platinum Glove-winning third baseman has to be traded.
In his Grapefruit League debut for the Cardinals on Sunday, infielder JJ Wetherholt powered an opposite-field, three-run home run that caught everyone's attention. That includes manager Oliver Marmol, who was impressed with how the ball jumped off Wetherholt's bat. “He stood on that one, huh? Backside kind of stayed through it, (and) the ball jumped off his bat,” Marmol said of Wetherholt’s homer to Daniel Guerrero of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Per Statcast, the homer traveled 345 feet at 100.6 mph exit velocity.
JJ Wetherholt, @MLBPipeline's No. 23 overall prospect, crushes a go-ahead homer 💥 #SpringTraining pic.twitter.com/AfHcnpSebs
— MLB (@MLB) February 23, 2025
Wetherholt also added a single in the fourth inning, making for a productive debut for the 22-year-old that should put a little fire under John Mozeliak.
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JJ Wetherholt has potential to shine sooner if Nolan Arenado is moved
While Nolan Arenado has arrived at the Cardinals camp ready to play ball, there is still a chance Mozeliak, the Cardinals' outgoing president of baseball operations, could move him. Arenado will still have to approve any move, and seems content to remain in St. Louis unless a deal materializes with one of the teams on his list. And the fanbase seems just fine with that arrangement, at least for now.
But if the Cardinals can move Arenado, this would allow for more opportunities for younger players, which was Mozeliak's whole goal in the first place. Nolan Gorman can play third base. Thomas Saggese has been getting some playing time at third and can also play the middle infield. Wetherholt can play second base and shortstop.
Moving Arenado allows the Cardinals to play Gorman at third base consistently, rather than bumping him to second. Saggese can play third base if Gorman needs a day off as the designated hitter. Wetherholt will play second base and could play shortstop if Masyn Winn needs a rest. All of those players are cost-controlled and in or entering their primes, and you can start to see how they might help St. Louis back into contention in a year or two.
For now, though, this is all a dream. Having Arenado around is still fabulous for fans, but seeing what the future holds is pretty great, too. It will be fun to see what happens as the season progresses.