St. Louis Cardinals: 6 players with something to prove

Edmundo Sosa

At the beginning of the season, Edmundo Sosa was thought of as just a guy who would back up Paul DeJong. He may play every once in a while, to give DeJong some rest. Well, Sosa has ended up with a much bigger role than anticipated this summer. Thank goodness he was ready.

As DeJong went down with an injury, Sosa stepped up and became the shortstop the Cardinals needed. With superb defense and some timely hits, he has become a pleasant surprise for the Cardinals.

Sosa has played in 98 games hitting .282/357/.403 with a +110 wRC. He’s launched five home runs, six doubles, and four triples. He’s generated 14 walks and four stolen bases.

All of this from a guy who was just supposed to be a bench player and backup shortstop.

He is certainly impressive and appears to have fans in manager Mike Shildt and bench coach Oliver Marmol.

He is on a one-year contract with the Cardinals this season and remains unsigned for 2022. With the Cardinals apparently hitting the free-agent market this offseason in search of an everyday shortstop and DeJong possible on the trade market, it will be interesting to see what happens with Sosa.

He isn’t just a shortstop as he has had time playing second base and third base. With his impressive defense and pop on offense, the Cardinals could, and should, very well keep Sosa as a backup.

Sosa should use the remainder of this season to help out where needed on the field and with an oft-times sluggish offense. Here’s hoping he does continue to impress and earn a role with the Cardinals in 2022.