Wetherholt Promoted to AAA

[bccardsfan]

IF deserved and you want to get a 40+ game run at AAA this season
then now is a good time to position the team's top prospect.

A lot of possibilities here Mel. As such you can be 100% correct.
The TD could also change the roster. IF I'm POBO, IF JJ gets promoted,
it is when it doesn't affect his status. The next 12 games, if they have any
influence it's more on Oli than JJ.

Exactly. IF JJ is promoted to the big club (provided he is hitting in AAA) it will not happen until it doesn't reduce his control by a year. Not happening before that....

[renostl]

JJ spit time between SS and 2nd in Springfield.
Personally, I would like the majority of his games in Memphis at 2nf base as Winn has SS in the majors . 2nd seems his likely full time spot in majors so give him max reps there IMO.

I suggest giving JJ reps at 2B and at SS in Memphis and again in ST. I love good healthy competition. Let the cream rise to the top. Maybe we will end up with two MLB-caliber short stops. What a tragedy that would be? It might create a trade opportunity. You can always move him back to 2B, if it doesn't work out.

I would think the Cards have their shortstop of the future currently occupying the position. Then the question becomes, what happens to the incumbent second baseman? Move to outfield? Who exits there? There’s no question the Cards need another positive bat in the lineup, but to get that bat in the lineup, someone’s gonna have to go. I hope JJ is here late this year and all of next year. I hope Gorman hits enough that the Cards trade Aranado and that Jordan solves his issues and becomes more than what he is now. But at this point, all of this is hope and speculation.

JJ can play 2B now, no need for more practice.
Arenado is his own dilemma but of Donovan, Saggese and JJ, I'd prefer both
JJ's arm and his bat at 3B before those 2. Gorman hits he gets 3B all good. JJ to 2B, BD to LF while TS and/or Fermin
get the IF backup duty and as a RH alternative.

[hugeCardfan]

Position players as of today:
Young “keepers”- Donovan, Winn
Young “probable keepers”- Herrera, Burleson
Veteran “keeper”?- Contreras
Veteran “on the fence”- Arenado, Nootbaar
TBD- Gorman, Walker, Scott, Saggese, Pages, Pozo

Obviously some holes to fill after the keepers.
Excited about Wetherholt and the two Catchers(Crooks and Bernal) for 2026!
Getting there but nice if a couple emerge from the TBD list.
Still have some time to find out.

Donovan will be 29 next year...that's young?

Trade him. Nothing is left off the table to be traded

Bernal and Crooks have proved what?

Dumb idea.

He's a Cardinal thru '27. You don't trade the really good ones. I'd play him at 3B and get rid of Arenado.

[scoutyjones2]

Position players as of today:
Young “keepers”- Donovan, Winn
Young “probable keepers”- Herrera, Burleson
Veteran “keeper”?- Contreras
Veteran “on the fence”- Arenado, Nootbaar
TBD- Gorman, Walker, Scott, Saggese, Pages, Pozo

Obviously some holes to fill after the keepers.
Excited about Wetherholt and the two Catchers(Crooks and Bernal) for 2026!
Getting there but nice if a couple emerge from the TBD list.
Still have some time to find out.

Donovan will be 29 next year...that's young?

Trade him. Nothing is left off the table to be traded

Bernal and Crooks have proved what?

He's a Cardinal thru '27. You don't trade the really good ones. Dumb idea.

Is he "really good?".

[hugeCardfan]

Position players as of today:
Young “keepers”- Donovan, Winn
Young “probable keepers”- Herrera, Burleson
Veteran “keeper”?- Contreras
Veteran “on the fence”- Arenado, Nootbaar
TBD- Gorman, Walker, Scott, Saggese, Pages, Pozo

Obviously some holes to fill after the keepers.
Excited about Wetherholt and the two Catchers(Crooks and Bernal) for 2026!
Getting there but nice if a couple emerge from the TBD list.
Still have some time to find out.

Donovan will be 29 next year...that's young?

Trade him. Nothing is left off the table to be traded

Bernal and Crooks have proved what?

He's a Cardinal thru '27. You don't trade the really good ones. Dumb idea.

Is he "really good?".

Yes.

[scoutyjones2]

Position players as of today:
Young “keepers”- Donovan, Winn
Young “probable keepers”- Herrera, Burleson
Veteran “keeper”?- Contreras
Veteran “on the fence”- Arenado, Nootbaar
TBD- Gorman, Walker, Scott, Saggese, Pages, Pozo

Obviously some holes to fill after the keepers.
Excited about Wetherholt and the two Catchers(Crooks and Bernal) for 2026!
Getting there but nice if a couple emerge from the TBD list.
Still have some time to find out.

Donovan will be 29 next year...that's young?

Trade him. Nothing is left off the table to be traded

Bernal and Crooks have proved what?

He's a Cardinal thru '27. You don't trade the really good ones. Dumb idea.

Is he "really good?".

Yes.

He's an All Star because everybody needs a representative

[Melville]

Is he a better hitter now than
Winn
Pages
Noot
Scott
Hampsen
Gorman

If so, why isn’t he in Stl lineup?

My God…. You really can’t be this dense can you?

Answer the question. Is he a better hitter than those listed?

If he were in MLB right now, he might be better than all of them - or perhaps only better than 2 of them.
No way to be certain.
Also depends on how you would define better: higher BA? more production? OBP?
And, of course, a few names on your list are employed only for their glove or positionality.

[Melville]

Very interesting timing.
After the Cub series debacle.
STL in the midst of an offensive drought.
Trade deadline approaching.
Message sent to players on the 40 man roster.
Message received.

I know I'm probably hitting the cynical button too hard, but I did see Bernie post this as well, so maybe there's something to it.

I wonder if JJ's call-up isn't a little red meat to the sharks who are out after last weekend. Not to say the kid doesn't deserve it. He absolutely does. But why now? He's been spanking that league pretty much all year. I get that you can't do it after a week or two...but again, he's torched that league pretty much from day one.

You are not being cynical any more than I am.
Why promote Wetherholt today - rather than a week ago or two weeks from now?
For the exact reasons I outlined above.
Anyone who does not see this is denying the obvious.
I don't have any idea what Bernie is doing these days, but if this is his take as well, he's not wrong.
This promotion is not a coincidence.
Easy.
Obvious.
Correct.

After showing that he could match his numbers that he achieved at Palm Beach in Springfield and indeed
did slightly better after a 60-game sample size why not move him up? The time line should be everything about
JJ and nothing more. He'll have genuine sample at Memphis. IF he continues his production there's
opportunity for maybe a September run or sooner, if not he'll learn more in Memphis.

It can be connected, doesn't have to be connected.

I agree the promotion is certainly deserved.
But the timing is fully intentional and is far more related to what is going on in STL than what will happen in Memphis.
Look at the STL schedule.
Next 6 games at home against Washington and Atlanta.
Then after the AGS break, six on the road in AZ and CO.
12 games against sub-.500 teams.
The players in STL know full well that they are expected to dominate that stretch of games.
And Wetherholt is literally being positioned in Memphis as one more reminder of that.
Zero question this is a move with a message.

IF deserved and you want to get a 40+ game run at AAA this season
then now is a good time to position the team's top prospect.

A lot of possibilities here Mel. As such you can be 100% correct.
The TD could also change the roster. IF I'm POBO, IF JJ gets promoted,
it is when it doesn't affect his status. The next 12 games, if they have any
influence it's more on Oli than JJ.

100% agree that the clock will be ticking loudly for The Marmot and others.
The promotion is, in part, designed to make that ticking louder.

[Goldfan]

Is he a better hitter now than
Winn
Pages
Noot
Scott
Hampsen
Gorman

If so, why isn’t he in Stl lineup?

My God…. You really can’t be this dense can you?

Answer the question. Is he a better hitter than those listed?

If he were in MLB right now, he might be better than all of them - or perhaps only better than 2 of them.
No way to be certain.
Also depends on how you would define better: higher BA? more production? OBP?
And, of course, a few names on your list are employed only for their glove or positionality.

.253/.694
.211/.604
.224/.699
.238/.647
.188/.485
.220/.717
Clearly high bars to clear. If the orgs best hitting prospect can’t currently clear those numbers……Paige/Cuse, those certainly are a challenge

[Ozziesfan41]

Is he a better hitter now than
Winn
Pages
Noot
Scott
Hampsen
Gorman

If so, why isn’t he in Stl lineup?

My God…. You really can’t be this dense can you?

Answer the question. Is he a better hitter than those listed?

If he were in MLB right now, he might be better than all of them - or perhaps only better than 2 of them.
No way to be certain.
Also depends on how you would define better: higher BA? more production? OBP?
And, of course, a few names on your list are employed only for their glove or positionality.

.253/.694
.211/.604
.224/.699
.238/.647
.188/.485
.220/.717
Clearly high bars to clear. If the orgs best hitting prospect can’t currently clear those numbers……Paige/Cuse, those certainly are a challenge

I would think you would have learned from the mistakes of the cardinals rushing prospects to the majors but I guess you’re as dumb as they are in that way. As soon as he struggled you would be crying about another overhyped cardinal prospect

[TraveledLessRoad]

Is Bernal projected to be a really good defensive catcher? Like, everything from pitch blocking, to framing, to arm strength? I only ask, because I know little about him outside of what I see on Baseball Reference. But, i hear people speak like he is our most likely long-term solution and his minor league offensive numbers look good but nothing too special

It was thought for a while before this year that his defense was definitely outpacing his hitting. Average defensive catcher at worst.

Thanks, Strummer

[An Old Friend]

Was kinda hoping he'd qualify for ROY campaign next year. So I hope they keep him in the minors until Sep.

It'd have to be some injuries and him crushing it at Memphis for him to get a callup in 2026, and they'd certainly do what they did with Winn to preserve his rookie eligibility.

I'm still on record thinking he's the opening day 2B in 2026.

So you think he’s going to have to crush it at Memphis and there be some injuries to get a callup next year and yet you think he’s the opening day 2B?

I meant 2025.

[An Old Friend]

Was kinda hoping he'd qualify for ROY campaign next year. So I hope they keep him in the minors until Sep.

It'd have to be some injuries and him crushing it at Memphis for him to get a callup in 2026, and they'd certainly do what they did with Winn to preserve his rookie eligibility.

I'm still on record thinking he's the opening day 2B in 2026.

I'm guessing you meant to post "2025" here, right?

Yes

[82birds]

JJ spit time between SS and 2nd in Springfield.
Personally, I would like the majority of his games in Memphis at 2nf base as Winn has SS in the majors . 2nd seems his likely full time spot in majors so give him max reps there IMO.

agree

then who has to sit? Prieto?

[imetsatchelpaige]

Is he a better hitter now than
Winn
Pages
Noot
Scott
Hampsen
Gorman

If so, why isn’t he in Stl lineup?

My God…. You really can’t be this dense can you?

Answer the question. Is he a better hitter than those listed?

It is not my job to educate you about things you should already know if you’re going to post here. Try reading and not posting.
But, to make a point, he’s not Albert Pujols. To make another point, the number of players who have successfully jumped from AA to the bigs in recent history can be counted on one hand.
Just for the record, for you, that’s five.
Assuming you have all your fingers, of course. Because brains appear to be in short supply.

[Cusecards]

Is he a better hitter now than
Winn
Pages
Noot
Scott
Hampsen
Gorman

If so, why isn’t he in Stl lineup?

My God…. You really can’t be this dense can you?

Answer the question. Is he a better hitter than those listed?

If he were in MLB right now, he might be better than all of them - or perhaps only better than 2 of them.
No way to be certain.
Also depends on how you would define better: higher BA? more production? OBP?
And, of course, a few names on your list are employed only for their glove or positionality.

.253/.694
.211/.604
.224/.699
.238/.647
.188/.485
.220/.717
Clearly high bars to clear. If the orgs best hitting prospect can’t currently clear those numbers……Paige/Cuse, those certainly are a challenge

You never learn....LOL
Ok
If you want to direct your [nonsense] to me and Paige....fine!
But please take note. Not one single other poster in this thread advocates promoting JJ at the moment!
I’d ask you some other questions concerning the roster makeup but based on your very limited insight into the game I’d be wasting my time.
You strictly post out of frustration which explains your perpetual “whining” on a daily basis.
Actually.....I suggest you return to whining it suits you better than intelligent baseball discussion.
Or maybe you can get some Tarot Cards, a Magic 8-Ball, and Ouija Board and go tell the FO you want to be GM????