St. Louis Cardinals: Nolan Gorman’s extra work has kept up

Nolan Gorman has been putting in extra work at second base this spring. He was expected to be the third baseman of the future for the St. Louis Cardinals, but after acquiring Nolan Arenado from the Colorado Rockies, the team actively sought ways to incorporate Gorman into the lineup.

After losing Kolten Wong to the Milwaukee Brewers, second base was the clearest advenue for Gorman to get playing time. The two options at second right now are Tommy Edman and Matt Carpenter, but Edman is not a known commodity and Carpenter is in the back-nine of his career.

So Gorman has a realistic chance to be the second baseman of the future if Arenado does not exercise the opt outs in his contract, something he has implied that he will not do. And while Gorman may not be ready for Opening Day, he may not be far behind.

Gorman is seeing action at second base in simulated games, per Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, perhaps a sign that he progressing at the position and that the team wants to see how he looks in-game action.

Gorman has the potential to be an elite threat in the lineup and pairing him in the infield with Arenado and Goldschmidt would give the Cardinals one of the best trios in baseball. Keith Law of The Athletic believes that he has 40+ home run potential “if he just keeps that contact rate at 70 percent or better.”

The Cardinals are optimistic that Gorman will be able to do that. First, he needs to get comfortable moving from third base to second, something the organization admits will not be easy. But the early signs are positive and could result in him seeing the majors sooner than later if he continues to progress.