3 St. Louis Cardinals to watch in fantasy baseball in 2022

Yahoo projections are in for the 2022 fantasy baseball season. Here are some St. Louis Cardinals that might provide extra value in 2022.

While projections may be down for the Redbirds 2022 season, the St. Louis Cardinals have quite a few players that can contribute in a fantasy baseball season. As we near what would be the start of spring training, many leagues are scheduled to start drafting in the next few weeks. With that in mind, let’s see which Cardinals might provide extra fantasy value heading into the 2022 season.

Hitter: Paul Goldschmidt, 1B

Only having one-position eligibility certainly hurts Paul Goldschmidt, but he has been a phenomenal player for the vast majority of his career. Usually the best hitter on every team he is on, Goldy should continue to crank along as the Cards’ best hitter this season from a fantasy perspective. Yahoo! predicts that Goldy will score 99 runs, smash 30 home runs, bat in 92 runs, steal eight bases, and secure a .284 batting average.

Each of those numbers are slightly below his 2021 numbers. With another year on his body, it is fair to assume he will play slightly fewer games and have a slight dip in production. Overall, Goldschmidt is projected to finish 33rd on the season, which is significantly higher than the next Cardinals hitter, Nolan Arenado, at 67th.

Starter: Jack Flaherty, SP

Adam Wainwright had the best season of any pitcher for the Cardinals last year. That being said, it was completely unexpected and most of his incredible came in the second half of the season after Jack Flaherty’s injury. With Flaherty healthy for a whole season, he is set to take Wainwright’s place as the Cardinals’ ace of the future.

Despite starting 17 games last season, Flaherty finished with nine wins, a 3.22 ERA, and a 1.06 WHIP. These numbers are spectacular. At the moment, Flaherty seems to be slipping a little in drafts. Any time a player is coming off an injury-plagued season, it is easy to get that player at a discount on draft day. If Flaherty is available in round five of a draft, make sure he does not escape your grasp.

Reliever – Giovanny Gallegos, RP

Giovanny Gallegos came on strong at the end of 2021. He took over the closer role from Alex Reyes and never looked back. Despite Reyes finishing with more than double the amount of saves as Gallegos, Gio ranked just one position behind Reyes for the yearly rankings. Gallegos’ impressive strikeout and WHIP numbers help his fantasy value tremendously.

Coming into 2022, Gallegos is reportedly staying in his closing role. He is projected to finish 53rd in fantasy this season, but his average draft pick is shockingly low. With a pre-season rank of 146, Gallegos, like most relievers, is slipping well past where he should in drafts. From my perspective, relievers are the way to win in fantasy, so be quick to grab Gallegos before you have to settle for a closer on a sub-par team.

It should be a fairly competitive season for the Cardinals. While projections are down at the moment, the season has yet to start. If these three have anything to say about it, they will be back in the playoffs once again and provide excellent fantasy value along the way.