3 position battles that will define Cardinals Spring Training and who will win

Battle for CF

Alec Burleson

This competition is likely for a bench spot, as the Cardinals have their starting center field situation planned out: Tommy Edman will man the position, assuming the club's top prospect, Masyn Winn (SS), makes the big league club. If he does not, Dylan Carlson will be next in line for the job. Still, as we know, the value of depth can never be overexamined or overstated. 

Alec Burleson has been in the majors with the Cards for about half of ‘22 and for all of ‘23, serving mainly as a bench player. During his service time, he is slashing .237/.295/.375 with 9 home runs and 38 RBIs. Those numbers are not bad, but where Burleson lacks ability is in his baserunning and defense. In his time in the MLB, he has a BsR (Baserunning above average) of -4.6 and a DRS (Defensive Runs Saved) of -4.

Victor Scott II 

Victor Scott II is one of the Cardinal's top prospects and is a dark horse candidate to make the opening-day roster. He is young and inexperienced, having only played in 163 total minor league games, but he really can play ball. 

In his highest level (AA), where he spent the most time (310 plate appearances) last season, he slashed .323/.373.450 with 7 home runs, 34 RBIs and 44 stolen bases. Besides the ability to steal bases, the big thing that separates Scott from Burlson is his ability to play the field: Scott has always been a plus defender, and his speed will allow him to cover a larger part of the outfield and track down more balls. Pay close attention to how many plate appearances Scott gets this spring -- it could be a tell as to what management's plan is with him moving forward. 

Prediction: Barring an outstanding spring from Scott and a very poor spring from Burleson, I think Burleson's age and experience will give him the edge. Expect this to change as early as the second half of the 2024 season, though.