The Cardinals may have one glaring infield question left, but the rest of the picture is starting to come together.
For 2026 and beyond, St. Louis looks far more settled around the diamond than it does on the mound.
JJ Wetherholt looked like a superstar in the making before landing on the Injured List, and the club already locked him up with a long-term extension before his rookie season even ended. Masyn Winn has dealt with injury issues over the last two seasons, but he’s still only 24 and has the kind of ceiling that can anchor an infield.
Alec Burleson, meanwhile, moved to first base in 2026 and has been one of the best all-around first basemen in baseball this year.
Burleson has appeared in 146 games and is hitting .283/.350/.467 with an .816 OPS, along with 22 homers, 34 doubles and 104 RBIs. He took home his first Silver Slugger Award last year, and a second one could be on the way.
That leaves third base as the spot St. Louis still has to solve.
Nolan Gorman opened the 2026 season as the answer there, but he struggled and was sent to Triple-A. He’s back in the majors now, but he still hasn’t recaptured the buzz from his 2023 season. Thomas Saggese has shown what he can do since getting back to the big leagues in the wake of the club’s injuries, including to Blaze Jordan, and Jordan remains part of the mix too.
Then there’s the wild card: Jesús Báez.
The No. 15 overall prospect in the system has put together a ridiculous first full season in the Cardinals’ organization after arriving last summer in a trade from the New York Mets. Báez can move around the infield, and his bat has done most of the talking. In 110 games in the Cardinals’ system this year, he has piled up 38 homers and 108 RBIs.
He added another blast on Wednesday, his 38th of the season, which the club says is tied for the fifth-most homers by a Cardinals prospect in franchise history.
"INF Jesús Báez (AA) belted his 38th HR of the season last night, his 8th over his last 15 games, and 24th in 56 games with Springfield since his promotion on June 23," the Cardinals shared. "The 21-year-old is currently tied for the 2nd-most homers in MiLB this year and ranks T5th in a single-season among any Cardinals minor leaguer in franchise history."
Báez is only 21 and hasn’t played above Double-A yet, but there’s still a chance for the Cardinals to test him in Triple-A in 2026 if they want to. If not, he’ll be a name to watch closely in Spring Training.
The power jump is the real eye-opener. Thirty-eight homers in 110 games projects to a 55-homer pace over a full 162-game season, and that kind of thump would change the conversation fast. With third base still unsettled, Báez has at least earned a shot to fight for the job.
In Other News...
Cardinals Get A Crucial Return As Another Roster Squeeze Looms
JJ Wetherholt is expected to be back in the Cardinals lineup during the upcoming home stand after working his way through wrist tendinitis, a timely boost for a club still trying to steady itself below .500. The return matters beyond just getting another bat into the mix, because St. Louis has been scraping for answers while trying to keep its season from drifting further off course.
The catch, of course, is that the roster math does not get any easier when a player comes off the injured side of the ledger. The Cardinals will need to clear a spot to activate Wetherholt, and Ramn Uras is viewed as the most likely move if the club goes that route, adding another layer of uncertainty to a roster already being managed with the standings in mind. [Read more 🡒]
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MLB.coms report that Atlanta could consider moving Spencer Strider only sharpens that debate. Strider has been injured this season, but his track record before the setback makes him the kind of arm that can change the tone of a rotation quickly if a team believes the risk is worth it. For the Cardinals, that would mean weighing a high-upside swing against a more conservative path, and it is exactly the sort of decision fans will argue over once the offseason begins in earnest. [Read more 🡒]
Cardinals Face A Tough Offseason Trade Debate Around Useful Pieces
The Cardinals spent the trade deadline reshaping parts of the roster, and the offseason may bring another round of hard conversations about useful pieces who could draw interest. Ivan Herrera, Andre Pallante and Riley OBrien all fit that category in different ways, with the club weighing performance, roster fit and long-term strategy as it looks for ways to keep improving without stripping away too much depth.
Herreras bat, Pallantes role on the pitching side and OBriens relief value each give St. Louis something worth protecting, but also something that could appeal to another team if the Cardinals decide to listen. None of that means a move is coming, only that this is the kind of winter where the front office has to decide whether holding onto familiar production matters more than turning it into a different need elsewhere. [Read more 🡒]