Cards' top Draft pick adjusting well to pro ball
John Denton
@JohnDenton555This story was excerpted from John Denton's Cardinals Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.
ST. LOUIS -- His Draft stock somewhat damaged by a series of hamstring injuries during the college baseball season, JJ Wetherholt sat nervously at last month¡¯s MLB Draft while trying to plot out where he might land.
When the Guardians chose second baseman Travis Bazzana -- Wetherholt¡¯s closest comp among the top talent available -- at No. 1 and the next few teams alternated between picking pitching and power hitting, Wetherholt assumed he¡¯d either go to the Royals at No. 6 or the Cardinals at No. 7. If those projections were off, Wetherholt doubted he would slip past the Angels at No. 8 or the hometown Pirates at No. 9.
The 21-year-old shortstop, widely considered to be the most advanced hitter available, was delighted to end up with a Cardinals franchise that has a rich history of winning. Silently, though, Wetherholt -- already the top-ranked prospect in the Cards' system, per MLB Pipeline -- was ticked that six other franchises dared to pass on him even though there was a time in early 2024 when many Draft experts had him pegged as being the potential No. 1 pick.
¡°Yeah a little [irked], because at the end of the day, I still had confidence that I was the best player [in the Draft],¡± Wetherholt said from Jupiter, Fla., where he had the day off on Wednesday and didn¡¯t play in the 75-win Palm Beach Cardinals' 3-1 loss to Daytona. ¡°It would have been cool going No. 1, but it¡¯s pretty hard to be upset with the circumstances that I have now. To be honest, I¡¯m really excited about how it went.¡±
The Cardinals were plenty excited to end up with the player MLB.com Draft expert Jonathan Mayo called ¡°one of the best pure hitters in the class¡± who possesses ¡°a very advanced approach at the plate.¡± How about this for advanced: The native of Mars, Pa., led the nation in hitting (.449) as a sophomore at West Virginia, walked more than he struck out and had an absurd .517 on-base percentage. Even when he was limited to just 36 games because of the hamstring issues in his junior season, the shortstop still hit .331 and had nearly twice as many walks (30) as he had strikeouts (17).
While transitioning from college pitching to pro pitching, Wetherholt has shown off a similarly high level of bat-to-ball skills. His on-base percentage sits at .364 and again he¡¯s walked more than he¡¯s struck out. And his first professional homer -- when he drove a fastball 389 feet and 100.7 mph off the bat, per Statcast -- broke open a 6-6 ballgame.
¡°Velocity is higher more consistently here, but the pitching is wilder and there¡¯s less control. College guys can command it in the zone, but these guys are a little wilder and that¡¯s been different,¡± said Wetherholt, who has hit No. 3 in the order for all 71 of his at-bats so far for Palm Beach. ¡°Mainly, I¡¯m just playing. You have ups and downs in baseball, but it¡¯s just about keeping on pushing. I definitely know that I belong here and it¡¯s just about understanding that and taking what comes at me day by day.¡±
Wetherholt is hopeful he can pull off a similarly quick rise through the organization as former West Virginia teammate and current Cardinal, Victor Scott II, who was St. Louis¡¯ Opening Day starter in center field back in March at the start of his third pro season. He also isn¡¯t worried that he could potentially be blocked by 22-year-old shortstop Masyn Winn, who already looks to be the face of the franchise for years to come following his stellar rookie season.
Wetherholt, who has played some second and third base earlier in his baseball career, knows that if his bat lives up to the hype, the Cardinals will have no trouble finding him a spot to play. Just like those anxious moments on draft night, he is eager to show teams that they greatly erred in passing on a hitter such as him.¡°
That [potential duplication with Winn] is just about clarity and I¡¯ll worry about that stuff when the time¡¯s right, but for now I just want to develop as a shortstop,¡± Wetherholt. ¡°If I do move up levels quickly and I am fortunate enough to play with [Winn], then I couldn¡¯t care less where I play.¡°
Pro ball is hard and it¡¯s not all going to be smooth sailing all the time. But I definitely know I belong in pro ball, and I expect to move up pretty quickly.¡±