Spring Training has just begun for the St. Louis Cardinals, and it’s already obvious who the organization’s top name to follow is.
No. 1 prospect JJ Wetherholt is in big league camp and has a legitimate opportunity to make his MLB debut when Opening Day arrives for the 2026 season. In his first full professional campaign in 2025, he looked every bit like a future star, posting a .306/.421/.510 slash line with 17 home runs, 59 RBIs, and 23 stolen bases across 109 games. He advanced to Triple-A and now sits just one step from the majors. If he continues to impress over the next month, his call-up could come sooner rather than later.
But with that being said, where could he play? Wetherholt is someone who can play second base, shortstop and third base. Shortstop is already occupied by Masyn Winn, which leaves second base and third base as options. For the Cardinals, they have Wetherholt, Nolan Gorman and Thomas Saggese as options for the two spots, among others.
The Cardinals phenom is someone to watch
On Sunday, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reported that in infield drills, Wetherholt was getting looks at second base and Gorman was getting looks at third base.
“As Cardinals infielders take their first structured ground ball rotation of spring, Nolan Gorman is stationed at third base and JJ Wetherholt is at second,” Jones wrote. “Ramos and Torres with Gorman at third, FermÃn, Saggese and Prieto with Wetherholt at second.”
It’s very early in Spring Training. Over the next six weeks or so, the infield is going to play itself out, but this is a sign of how the club views Wetherholt and Gorman. Both can play second base and third base, but getting the No. 1 prospect at second base and Gorman at third base arguably would be the easiest path forward. Gorman filled in at third base when Nolan Arenado was hurt last offseason. Keeping him there would be an easy path forward. Wetherholt can play all over the place. If Gorman is at third base, Wetherholt’s path to the big leagues would be clearest at second base.
