Here's how MLB's No. 5 prospect will immediately impact Cardinals' lineup
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JJ Wetherholt has been taking Major League-quality at-bats for some time. He might as well be taking them at the game’s actual top level.
On Monday, the Cardinals announced that MLB Pipeline’s No. 5 overall prospect will open the 2026 season in the Major Leagues. His expected debut will come at second base Thursday when the Cardinals host the Rays on Opening Day at Busch Stadium.
Before he even takes his first MLB at-bat, there is a solid argument that Wetherholt will be the best hitter in the Cardinals' lineup immediately upon his arrival.
Drafted seventh overall out of West Virginia in 2024, the left-handed hitter certainly held his own in his second Spring Training. He may have batted only .212 over 15 games -- affected no doubt by a low .200 average on balls in play in the small sample -- but he partnered that with a .386 on-base percentage and nine walks, tied for most on the St. Louis roster with Alec Burleson and Masyn Winn. Wetherholt stayed disciplined as a non-roster invitee in big league camp, while other prospects may have wanted to show their capabilities with the bat and become overeager to take hacks. Instead, the former Mountaineer chased on only 15 percent of pitches outside the zone in Grapefruit League play and made contact on 82 percent of his swings when he did let loose.
There was some pop there too, with a pair of homers and 15 of his 27 batted-ball events (55.6 percent) exceeding the hard-hit standard of 95 mph in exit velocity.
It’s that overall well-rounded offensive profile that has made Wetherholt such a prominent prospect at both the collegiate and professional levels.
Wetherholt won the Division I batting title with a .449 average for WVU in 2023, and while hamstring issues affected him a year later, he was still considered a candidate to go first overall the following summer before landing with the Cardinals six picks later. He dominated the upper levels in his first full season of Minor League ball, hitting .306/.421/.510 with 17 homers and 23 steals over 109 games at Double-A and Triple-A. He was even better at the latter (.314/.416/.562, 10 homers in 47 games), and his 156 wRC+ was best among players aged 22 or younger at Triple-A (minimum 200 plate appearances) in 2025, beating out other stellar prospects like Samuel Basallo (151) and Roman Anthony (145).
St. Louis’ top prospect bats from an open, relaxed and upright stance, always looking comfortable from the left side of the box before he gets going with a leg kick. He marries that strong plate discipline with good barrel manipulation that helps his above-average power play to all fields. While his exit velocities won’t pop in similar ways to bigger sluggers, he does a nice enough job of driving the ball in the air or on a line (and only rarely popped up) to propel his strong batting averages.
With that near double-plus hit tool, he could be a candidate to bat .300 with around 20 homers over multiple seasons now that he’s in St. Louis. This decade, the Cardinals have only had two .300 batters, and they were both Paul Goldschmidt (2020, '22).
Last season, only four St. Louis hitters got at least 400 plate appearances and posted wRC+ marks above 100 -- two of them have been traded in Willson Contreras (124) and Brendan Donovan (119). The others are DH/part-time catcher Iván Herrera (137) and first baseman Alec Burleson (124). Without big talents coming, the Cards could use a quality bat and overall table setter near the top of the lineup, and that’s exactly where Wetherholt should slide in right away beginning Thursday.
The 23-year-old moved around shortstop, second base and third base in 2025 but has been mostly focused on the keystone this spring with Donovan officially moving on to the Mariners in the offseason. With his above-average speed and arm, Wetherholt has the athleticism teams covet up the middle, but he wasn’t going to knock Winn, a Gold Glover who is only six months older than him, off the six.
Winn and Wetherholt have the potential to become one of the Majors’ best double-play combinations in quick order, depending on the bat of the former and defense of the latter in his new full-time position. With a rebuild ongoing in St. Louis, that partnership should help Cardinals fans dream of the days when the W’s bring W’s to the Gateway of the West.