Wetherholt Promoted to AAA

[Goldfan]

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

So what kind of player do you think the Cardinals could obtain for Donovan? Who would you try to trade him for?

Trade NA, move Donny to 3b, put JJ at 2b
Dump Miles and Fedde
Don’t play Herrera at C another inning
Acquire a legit SP
Start McGreevy and stop screwing around with him
Find a legit OF bat……wasting 3 offensive positions with barely serviceable ML talent is a joke.
And if Oli can’t figure out how to manage and reposition a ML rotation align with playing teams who you NEED to beat head to head get a babysitter for him

It's called a bench coach.

I don’t think a bench coach has much sway over the SP’s……the Oli and Dusty brain trust need a special pitching overseer if they’re too stupid to properly align their matchups. TLR/Dunc were masters at this…..they’d reconfigure weeks ahead to have best arms going against Divison rivals. Watching Oli is like watching a baby trying walk…..

I think after the season Marmol will be replaced and I am good with that. However, is lamenting the fact that he doesn't do it like a couple of hall of fame level guys did seem reasonable? If that level of performance is the only satisfactory outcome, you are certain to be disappointed with Marmol's replacement. Oli can and should do better.

I’m not a HOFer and I’ve figured it out…..is this difficult?? Gray got 1 start out of 7 seven games against Cubbies…..Fedde/Miles got 4. And everyone knows Miles gets his (bleep) handed to him in Wrigley….

[Talkin' Baseball]

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

So what kind of player do you think the Cardinals could obtain for Donovan? Who would you try to trade him for?

Trade NA, move Donny to 3b, put JJ at 2b
Dump Miles and Fedde
Don’t play Herrera at C another inning
Acquire a legit SP
Start McGreevy and stop screwing around with him
Find a legit OF bat……wasting 3 offensive positions with barely serviceable ML talent is a joke.
And if Oli can’t figure out how to manage and reposition a ML rotation align with playing teams who you NEED to beat head to head get a babysitter for him

It's called a bench coach.

I don’t think a bench coach has much sway over the SP’s……the Oli and Dusty brain trust need a special pitching overseer if they’re too stupid to properly align their matchups. TLR/Dunc were masters at this…..they’d reconfigure weeks ahead to have best arms going against Divison rivals. Watching Oli is like watching a baby trying walk…..

I think after the season Marmol will be replaced and I am good with that. However, is lamenting the fact that he doesn't do it like a couple of hall of fame level guys did seem reasonable? If that level of performance is the only satisfactory outcome, you are certain to be disappointed with Marmol's replacement. Oli can and should do better.

I’m not a HOFer and I’ve figured it out…..is this difficult?? Gray got 1 start out of 7 seven games against Cubbies…..Fedde/Miles got 4. And everyone knows Miles gets his (bleep) handed to him in Wrigley….

It's hard to get too cute when 40% of your rotation is soiling the bed.

[Cardinals4Life]

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

Show me the example where all this seasoning in minors made the great difference in being an All-star and falling on their face? You understand that if a player is really good enough to excel they’ll figure it out and excel…..if they’re a JAG…..all the time in the world at AA and AAA aint going to matter.
Gorman/Walker/Noot/even Winn do they need more time at AAA to figure out how to hit ML pitching???? Either you got it or you don’t

Walker was definitely rushed and it has showed. Winn was rushed also, though he has fared slightly better. (His valuable glove has helped him too.) Gorman was probably rushed also, though I think he is who he is. (High power upside/High swing and miss.) Noot was a college kid, so he was older/more polished. He is who he is (a serviceable 4th Ofer who can play all 3 spots and not hurt you too bad, but not a guy you want in there lineup 150+ games). He is a complimentary pieces being forced to be a "core" piece.

I'd also add VSII to this list. Overall these guys need more minor league time to not only develop, but also to learn the game more - something that is seriously lacking if you watch them day in and day out.

The majors used to be a place where players came up and were polished and understood how to play the game. Now, "on the job training" is used for guys who they see as having physical tools they like. (i.e. Walker's size, Winn's glove/athleticism, Gorman's power potential, Scott's speed)

This isn't just a Cardinal problem, although I would argue that the Cardinals have been heavily influenced to deliver a young "star" by other teams that have had a young star take off. This has forced them to rush guys up to try and find that "young star".

[Goldfan]

Our 5 best hitting prospects at AA:
JJ Wetherholt - 22 years old - AA - 159 wRC+ (half season)
Jordan Walker - 20 years old - AA - 124 wRC+ (full season)
Nolan Gorman - 21 years old - AA - 124 wRC+ (half season)
Dylan Carlson - 20 years old - AA - 137 wRC+ (full season)
Oscar Taveras - 20 years old - AA - 155 wRC+ (full season)
Colby Rasmus - 20 years old - AA - 145 wRC+ (full season)

AAA
Walker - 135 PAs, 89 wRC+ (then demoted after full MLB season and 94 wRC+ in 377 PAs)
Gorman - 328 PAs, 105 wRC+
Carlson - 79 PAs, 160 wRC+
Taveras - 448 PAs, 120 wRC+
Rasmus - 387 PAs, 93 wRC+

What I see is that Walker and Gorman are not the same as JJ and probably shouldn’t have been promoted to MLB.
I have no idea what happened to Carlson. He hit well for a year. He seems a bit laid back and lazy, he should’ve been in the weight room but it doesn’t appear he put in the time. Perhaps that’s his personality and why he failed

[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

Regardless of all-star status, he is still a good player.
There was a time when Cards fans stuffed the ballot boxes too.

He is also the type of player that the Cards don't traditionally keep when their salary goes up
and replacements are on the roster.

He's due a raise too. Trade em

[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

So what kind of player do you think the Cardinals could obtain for Donovan? Who would you try to trade him for?

Colby Thomas and Mason Barnett or Luis Morales

[12xu]

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

So what kind of player do you think the Cardinals could obtain for Donovan? Who would you try to trade him for?

Colby Thomas and Mason Barnett or Luis Morales

I would not want Barnett. I cannot imagine the A's trading both Thomas and Morales for Donovan. They typically hold on to young prospects like these guys.

[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

So what kind of player do you think the Cardinals could obtain for Donovan? Who would you try to trade him for?

Colby Thomas and Mason Barnett or Luis Morales

I would not want Barnett. I cannot imagine the A's trading both Thomas and Morales for Donovan. They typically hold on to young prospects like these guys.

Throw in another player...

[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.

He’s six months younger than Winn who has been the starting SS since last season…..who is hitting .250/.699. Should he go back to AAA??
How long will JJ have to hit at AAA to satisfy your process?

Until at least September, preferably next year.
Baseball history is littered with the remains of promising players brought up too early. As I said, do some research and answer your own inane questions.