10 New Year's predictions for the St. Louis Cardinals in 2025

Prediction #8 - JJ Wetherholt cements himself as a top prospect, primed to start with the big league club in 2026

For all of the hype surrounding Mathews' and his meteoric rise, it shows you just how special JJ Wetherholt is that there is zero question as to whether or not he's the Cardinals' top prospect.

Immediately upon being drafted, Wetherholt was slotted into the top 30 prospects in baseball on every top 100 list. The Cardinals have not had a talent viewed this highly upon being drafted in decades. That doesn't mean he'll be their best prospect since then, but others had to work to earn that kind of ranking - Wetherholt's reputation and skillset precede him.

Viewed by many as the favorite to go number one overall in the 2024 MLB Draft, Wetherholt suffered a hamstring injury that caused him to fall down draft boards, but even in the minutes leading up to the draft, many believed he would still end up being taken by the Cleveland Guardians. Instead, he slid all the way to number seven, where the Cardinals were thrilled to select him for their future.

Wetherholt's 65-grade hit tool is his calling card, just a tick below being a plus-plus tool, but he's been highly regarded for his elite bat-to-ball skills, maximizing damage on pitches in the zone, and laying off even borderline balls to make pitchers come attack him.

Paired with above-average power and speed, Wetherholt has true All-Star potential and has recently been compared to free-agent third baseman Alex Bregman, who'll likely be cashing in on close to a $200 million deal here soon.

I wouldn't rule out Wetherholt blazing through the minors this year and ending up in St. Louis, especially if they feel he is ready and they want to get fans to the ballpark. What I will predict though is that by the end of 2025, the Cardinals will be anticipating Wetherholt running with a starting job out of camp in 2026, ushering in the Chaim Bloom era with a new face for the young core.

Prediction #9 - Paul Goldschmidt and Nolan Arenado have improved seasons after leaving St. Louis

While Paul Goldschmidt has already found a new home with the New York Yankees, Arenado is still a Cardinal. But as I predicted at the beginning, I do believe he ends up being traded, and I believe both players will bounce back with their new clubs in a way that will likely frustrate Cardinals fans.

Let's start with Goldschmidt. 2024 was beyond disappointing for the former MVP. On the season, he slashed .245/.302/.414 with 22 home runs and 65 RBI in 154 games, good for an exactly league-average 100 wRC+. Oh, and he was sixth-worst in baseball among qualified hitters with runners in scoring position. Yikes.

But things did improve as the season went along. From July 1st through the rest of the season, Goldschmidt posted a 116 wRC+ in 305 plate appearances, which equated to a .269/.310/.473 slash line. While the home runs weren't there like they used to (11), he was a doubles machine once again (23) which is still an extremely valuable thing for anyone's lineup.

As for Arenado, he also had a better final three months of the season than he did beginning for St. Louis. On the year, Arenado was a 102 wRC+ guy, but from July on, he posted a 110 wRC+ due to a boost in his average and slugging percentage down the stretch. Even in a bad year by his standards, Arenado was still a 3.1 fWAR player, so a slight uptick in his bat gets him closer to a very valuable 4-win player.

I hesitated to use the word "bounce back" with these guys as I feel like it's a loaded term, but I do think we see improved play from both of them next year. No, they won't be All-Stars or back to their usual selves, but I still believe they have value to provide their clubs will moving forward.