I get it. We all get it. You’re afraid this is going to be another year of losing Cardinals baseball. A sad sequel to 2025, something to suffer through. But I’m here to tell you that you are wrong. More wrong than when Nyjer Morgan thought he would get the best of Chris Carpenter.
We’ve all heard the interviews from the new PoBo Mr. Bloom. We’ve dissected each and every syllable to find out what is truly happening. But the answer is simple. This season is a prequel. No, there won’t be any JarJar, but this will lead to things greater than even the Empire Strikes back. To hold the Commissioner’s Trophy high above your head you need to have your feet standing on a rock-solid foundation. And that is exactly what this team is rebuilding.
You want to be one of the greatest? To quote my third favorite athlete of all time:
“I learned during all my career to enjoy suffering.” -Rafa Nadal
What to Watch From the Cardinals:
First, pay very close attention to who plays where and when and how often. This isn’t a normal regular season, it’s a 162 game tryout for the World Series contending teams of 2028-2032.
Who will actually get the runway we’ve been hearing about? Is Gorman the everyday third baseman? Remember 2023? If he is that, you can pencil him in for 35 and 105. Will Jordan Walker, come hell or high groundball rate, be THE right fielder? Is Herrera a catcher or just a hitter, because as the great Danny Mac recently said on Great Talk, “His best position is in the batter’s box.”
The only offensive certains I know are this; Masyn Winn is THE shortstop, and Alec Burleson is THE first baseman. That’s 6 positions and 7 spots in the lineup that are unclear, unsettled, and up for grabs.
VS2 is electric when in the field or on the base paths…but…getting ON those basepaths is the key. His career OBP is .283 in 618 plate appearances. In Vince Coleman’s rookie season, he had 692 plate appearances and a .320 OBP. We won’t see steal numbers like Coleman ever again, but if Victor Scott II can get to a .320 OBP or higher, he will be in the discussion for an All-Star team. Last season he was on base with an opportunity to steal 133 times and had 34 stolen bases. Basically, when he got on, he stole a bag 26% of the time. Get him on 200 times and he’s stealing 50.
This Cardinals Rotation has Potential…
It starts with Matthew Liberatore, literally and figuratively. The older he gets and the more he pitches, the better he gets. Last season he tossed a career high 151.2 IP and had a career low ERA of 4.21. His first half was everything we need this year, his second half was more forgettable than the reboot of Mad About You. (EXACTLY). The team needs April-June Libby for all six months.
Then there’s Dustin May. I’m all in on the look, hair, beard, you name it. But last season was tough on him coming back from missing all of 2024 due to (checks Google) “a near-fatal, torn esophagus after a piece of lettuce from a salad got lodged in his throat. While trying to wash it down with water, the resulting pressure caused a serious tear, requiring emergency, life-saving surgery that ultimately ended his 2024 season.” Dear GOD. Well, that’s one for books, Jerry. But, if he pitches like pre-esophagus tear Dustin May, we have a steal.
Then there’s Michael McGreevy! We haven’t had a baby face like this since Brad Thompson took the bump in days of yore! Like any 23- or 24-year-old, McGreevy had some GREAT days, and some he’d rather forget and delete from the game log. My prediction is that he’ll be as good as Libby was last year, which is what this team needs.
Now things get interesting. Kyle Leahy, talk about upside! In 88 innings last year he had a 3.07 ERA. But if he doubles that workload how high will the ERA balloon rise? Will it be up there with Becky and Wanda, or will it stay a little closer to Earth? He’s never thrown more than 3.2 innings in a single game, so these first few starts will be something to keep tabs on.
As for Andre Pallante, we’ll get to that in the Q&A here in a couple of paragraphs.
The bullpen, I really don’t know who will do what and when. JoJo and O’Brien can’t pitch every day, I mean, they’re not Matt Bowman. I am as clueless as most. So many questions! And the beauty of 2026, we will FINALLY have answers.
Now to the mailbag!
I reached out and you all responded with some good, some ugly, and some nonsense…Just like I like it.
Jeffrey Trotter, Columbia MO (I think)
Are we really gonna have to go through another season of trying to make Andre Pallante happen? I’m all in right now with the plan being executed by Chaim and the development team, but I’m over watching Pallante throw in-game batting practice.
Well, buckle up sweetheart! Was his ERA 5.31 over the course of an entire season? Yes. Is that good? No. But, I cannot think of a circumstance where he is allowed to be that bad and also stay in the rotation for more than 10 starts. The team has plenty of pitching prospects in their top 20, and Gordon Graceffo ready and wanting to start games. If he is bad, he’ll be in the bullpen by June.
Eric Hill, St. Louis, MO
This is Jordan Walker’s age 24 season. At what point do we accept that he is a poor man’s Jason Heyward?
First off, you know I love you E-Hi. Second off, how effing dare you? Jason Heyward was an absolute beast from the jump. Second in Rookie of the year, All- Star, .849 OPS. And, Jordan will be BETTER. Just let him be and let him eat. He’s bigger than Dave Winfield, has an absolute cannon attached to his right shoulder, and WILL be a baseball beast…hopefully it’s in the STL.
Michael Wesley Wingate, Columbia, MO (Grandson of a member of the Sportsman’s Park Knot-Hole Gang)
Why haven’t Nootbaar and Gorman been traded when we shipped an all-star and a hall of famer out for handfuls of beans? I could have worded that better, but you get the picture.
Noot cannot stay healthy, but when he does the advanced analytics love him, and we live in the era of spreadsheets and AI informing 40 man rosters. I will accept zero Gorman slander here. He gets his back healthy and he’s 80% of Kyle Schwarber, or 100% of Pete Incaviglia. If none of this happens, each will be flying from Lambert to a city of note at the Trade Deadline.
Kyle Kelley, Independence, MO
Do you have any insider intel on the rumor that Vince Coleman will be making this his comeback season?
Zero, none, zilch, nada.
Jerid Saffell, Afton, MO (5 handicap)
At what point do we call Ray Lankford to come out of retirement and DH?
Why would you even send my imagination on a journey like this??? He could do it…he COULD.
Mark Wieners, Arnold, MO (World Class First Team Hater)
Could the 2026 St. Louis Cardinals beat the 2026 Memphis Redbirds?
They did this week. Eat it, Wieners.
Let’s get this season started. Let’s all enjoy this prequel, this prelude to a championship. It’s a reset that had to come, as it does for all teams. Luckily for us we had the Billikens this winter…
Born and raised in St. Louis, Will Saulsbery is a multitalented writer and musician. A graduate of the University of Missouri, Saulsbery has established himself as a prominent ghostwriter, with his work appearing in top-tier publications like Newsweek, Time, Forbes, Fast Company, Tech Crunch, Entrepreneur, The Observer, and The Hill.
His collection of short stories, Death in the Midwest, A Collection Of Nine Stories Of Death In The Midwestern United States... And One In London, is now available for sale and download. He is also the host of the podcast Hoops on Scoops for the Scoops Sports Network.
