1 prospect who will make the Cardinals Opening Day roster and 2 who won't

Which prospects will make it on the 26-man roster out of spring training?

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Victor Scott II will start the year in Triple-A.

I am as disappointed as anyone with this revelation.

Victor Scott II is an electric, athletic, and talented ball player. He will have a long professional baseball career as a defensive-first center fielder with a decent ability to hit. However, it isn't his time...yet.

VS2 was given a taste of the majors last year as a necessity; Lars Nootbaar and Dylan Carlson, both of the club's presumptive center field options, went down with injuries before the year started. Therefore, Scott was called upon to fill in for the two outfielders. His initial stint in the majors didn't go as planned.

Scott finished his major-league debut season with a .179/.219/.283 slash line, two home runs, five stolen bases, and 10 runs batted in for a wRC+ of 40. He struck out 27% of the time, and he walked only 4% of the time. For a player who reached base nearly 35% of the time as a prospect, there was a clear shortage in his offensive production.

His average exit velocity was below average, and he elevated the ball at a much higher rate in the majors than he did in the minors (~30% fly-ball rate in the minors compared to 40.4% rate in the majors). Scott also wasn't able to take advantage of his burning speed on the basepaths, for he reached base only 34 times in 155 plate appearances.

At Winter Warm-Up last weekend, Scott discussed what he could improve on this offseason heading into 2025. He spoke heavily about the need to study his play on both sides of the ball. He has spent ample time in Jupiter, Florida, this offseason preparing for the year, and he hopes to become a hit producer this year. He has been working diligently with new hitting coach Brant Brown to identify areas of improvement in his offensive approach.

Scott also discussed how he's been working with new coach Jon Jay to improve his routes and better jumps on fly balls in the outfield. It's been clear that Scott has been putting in the work this offseason to improve his game from a holistic approach.

The primary reason I believe Scott will be squeezed out of a roster spot heading into Opening Day would be the logjam of outfielders. Barring drastic shifts in spring, John Mozeliak has already stated that his preferred outfield alignment would include Lars Nootbaar, Michael Siani, and Jordan Walker with Alec Burleson as the fourth outfielder. If Nolan Arenado remains on the roster heading into 2025, Brendan Donovan will also find some outfield reps. It's no fault of Scott's that he will be squeezed off the roster this year.

Victor Scott was robbed of development last year when he was pushed to the major-league roster due to injuries. He's clearly made cerebral and physical changes this offseason, but he could benefit by starting the year off in Memphis to test those changes. I wouldn't be surprised to see Scott be the next man up if an injury occurs, though, and his spot on the 40-man roster helps his chances of breaking camp on the big-league squad.

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