Another year means another leap forward for Burleson

Development is rarely linear in the game of baseball. Players experience ups and downs, breakout seasons and setbacks, all while trying to become the best version of themselves.

Apparently, Alec Burleson did not get that memo.

Since debuting on Sept. 8, 2022, Burleson has improved in nearly every facet of his game each season. He’s now in his fifth Major League campaign, and his steady progression is producing All-Star-caliber results.

When Burleson first made it to St. Louis, there were three distinct areas of his game that needed work: He swung far too often, his defense was subpar, and he hadn’t quite tapped into his power potential. But thanks to his elite bat-to-ball skills, Burleson had a foundation to build upon as he worked to round out the rest of his game.

During his first full season in 2023, Burleson hit .244 with eight home runs over 107 games while bouncing in and out of the Cardinals’ lineup. Even amid those struggles, there were signs of future success. Among qualified hitters, only the Yankees’ Aaron Judge and the Blue Jays’ Vladimir Guerrero Jr. had a larger gap between their wOBA and expected wOBA, suggesting Burleson’s results lagged behind the quality of his contact.

The Cardinals made a few things clear to Burleson that offseason: He needed to get in better shape, improve his defense and find a way to do more damage at the plate.

Despite coming into Spring Training without a clear role on the Cardinals’ roster, Burleson put his head down and showed the fruits of his labor, earning a starting job in 2024 and appearing in 152 games. He slugged 21 home runs with 78 RBIs and a .734 OPS, and he cut down the number of negative plays defensively despite playing in 45 more games.

Heading into 2025, Burleson still had two areas to address: consistency and plate discipline.

Burleson had a red-hot summer in ‘24, smashing 18 home runs with a .799 OPS from May 13 to Aug. 31, but he saw his OPS drop to .510 during September. Second, he still needed to cut down his swing rate, and especially on pitches outside the strike zone. Burleson rarely struck out, but he still expanded the zone too often.

So what did Burleson do? He cut down his overall swing rate by 6.6% and his chase percentage by 5.8%, and he put together the best offensive season of his career thus far, winning the National League utility player Silver Slugger Award on the back of an .802 OPS.

With significant roster turnover this offseason, the Cardinals asked Burleson to take on an even larger role. He became their everyday first baseman following the trade of Willson Contreras, and Burleson entered the season as the second-oldest position player in their Opening Day lineup at just 27 years old.

Once again, Burleson has answered the challenge, slashing .290/.356/.486 with 11 home runs and 48 RBIs through 65 games. He’s on pace for 27 home runs, 41 doubles and 117 RBIs -- career highs in virtually every offensive category.

Burleson has done all of that while also becoming a difference-maker defensively at first base in his first crack as the full-time starter. He’s helped St. Louis’ infield produce highlight-reel plays each week through his improved feel around the first-base bag, and he has chipped in with his own fair share of diving stops and leaping grabs.

So what’s next in Burleson’s continued development? Finding more success against left-handed pitching has the potential to vault him into a whole other class of hitter. Burleson has been one of the five best hitters in baseball against right-handed pitching this year (171 wRC+), but his wRC+ against left-handed pitching (45) ranks 176th out of 187 qualified hitters.

If Burleson’s career has shown anything, it’s that improvement is rarely accidental. Every year, he has identified a weakness, addressed it and returned as a better player. Over his four full seasons, he has gone from a reserve player fighting for at-bats to one of the Cardinals’ most important offensive pieces. For a club trying to build its next contender, Burleson has been the model for what successful player development can look like.