ST. LOUIS -- Back in early July, when Cardinals top prospect JJ Wetherholt was starring but still toiling in Double-A, he had a phrase he would mutter to keep himself focused on the task at hand while many of his 2024 MLB Draft classmates were already getting their shots at big league glory.
“Be where your feet are,” Wetherholt, 23, would remind himself while using a phrase that speaks to a maturity beyond his years.
Wetherholt, the No. 5-ranked prospect in MLB Pipeline’s latest list of Top 100 Prospects, kept his focus where it needed to be and blocked out distractions in his first full professional season. The Cardinals were conservative with their handling of the versatile infielder, stashing him in Single-A Palm Beach in 2024 after drafting him No. 7 overall and then having him split time with Double-A Springfield and Triple-A Memphis in 2025. All he did this past season was slash .306/.421/.510 with 17 homers and 59 RBIs in 109 games.
With Wetherholt having already proven himself to be one of MLB’s top prospects and someone who is almost certain to make his big league debut in 2026, it’s not too early to wonder about what his ceiling could be while wearing the birds on a bat across his chest. Could he do what Athletics slugger Nick Kurtz and Braves catcher Drake Baldwin did in 2025 when they won Rookie of the Year Awards?
Here is a look at some of the factors that could come into play in Wetherholt’s possible push into Rookie of the Year contention:
Playing time
Cards president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom was candid at last week’s General Managers Meetings in Las Vegas in noting that the club is listening to trade offers for Nolan Arenado, Sonny Gray and Brendan Donovan.
The Cards would be pained to part with Donovan, but they are also realistic in realizing that their window to be competitive again likely doesn’t align with that of the 28-year-old Donovan, who figures to land a significant raise this winter following his first MLB All-Star Game appearance.
Dealing Arenado and/or Donovan would open up plenty of playing time for Wetherholt at third base or second base. The Cards were wise to move Wetherholt around the diamond this past season in the Minor Leagues, as he played 20 games at second base, 61 games at shortstop and 12 games at third base. If St. Louis' expected deals come to fruition this winter, there should be plenty of room for the 5-foot-10, 190-pound Wetherholt to be an everyday player and get 500 at-bats at the MLB level.
Box score stuffer
A big part of the excitement around Wetherholt is his ability to beat foes in a variety of different ways.
The former NCAA batting champion while at West Virginia University showed that he can hit for average at the professional level. While his batting average for the season was .306, he was actually better with Memphis, where he hit .314 in 47 games. This also says plenty about Wetherholt’s elite bat-to-ball skills: He nearly had as many walks (72) and he did strikeouts (73) in 2025.
Despite his small stature, Wetherholt also showed that he has plenty of pop at the plate in 2025. In addition to hitting 17 homers -- 10 of which came with Memphis -- Wetherholt led off five games with long balls. He also drilled 28 doubles and two triples, while driving in 59 runs -- many of them from the leadoff spot.
Wetherholt first caught the eye of MLB scouts because of his speed, but he fell in the Draft because of hamstring troubles in his second college season. He clearly put those issues behind him this past season while swiping 23 bases in 26 attempts.
To put Wetherholt’s numbers into perspective, AL Rookie of the Year runner-up Jacob Wilson led qualified rookies with a .311 batting average. Meanwhile, Kurtz (36 homers, 86 RBIs) and Baldwin (19 homers, 80 RBIs) led rookies in RBIs and finished first and fourth, respectively, in homers. Chandler Simpson led all rookies in steals with 44, while Caleb Durbin led the NL rookies with 18 steals, but he was thrown out six times.
NL Rookie of the Year competition
The last Cardinals player to win a Rookie of the Year Award was likely future Hall of Famer Albert Pujols in 2001, and just six players in the rich history of the franchise have nabbed the NL’s top rookie honor.
If Wetherholt is going to become the seventh, he’ll likely have to beat a host of talented pitchers.
Mets right-hander Nolan McLean is the likely favorite after striking out 57 in an eight-start MLB cameo in 2025. Pittsburgh’s Bubba Chandler, Dodgers prospect River Ryan and Padres reliever Bradgley Rodriguez also could be strong Rookie of the Year candidates.