5 Options to Play Shortstop for the St. Louis Cardinals

The Cardinals have had disappointing production from the shortstop position to start the year, who can fill the void for the rest of the 2022 season?

Sitting at 18-15 going following Saturday’s 4-0 victory over the San Francisco Giants, the St. Louis Cardinals have cooled off a bit after a hot start to the 2022 season. The club is still very much a contender in the National League and has the tools currently on the roster to have better results than they currently put out. But in order to be a true World Series contender, outside help is most likely needed.

One of the main areas of improvement for the club is easy to identify: shortstop. To start the year, the Cardinals used a platoon of Paul DeJong and Edmundo Sosa, and got some of the leagues worth production from the position. The club is currently getting an OPS of .557 from the shortstop position, which is bottom five in all of baseball. While the Cardinals lineup as a whole has been up and down with others not performing to expectations, solving the blackhole at shortstop would give this club a huge boost in the hitting department.

The Cardinals have different options they can roll with assuming Paul DeJong and Edmundo Sosa are not the everyday shortstop options moving forward this season. This article will identify five different options that the St. Louis Cardinals could turn to at the shortstop position. Some of these are internal options that may give the Cardinals the production they are looking for, and others are external options that could give the Cardinals a huge boost this season. Let’s take a look at five of these options that the Redbirds could land on.

Option 1: Xander Bogaerts

Let’s go big with the first option. Red Sox Xander Bogaerts has the option to opt out of his contract this offseason, and with a very slow start from the Red Sox, many have speculated they could flip him towards the deadline. One of the rumored teams to trade for Bogaerts is the St. Louis Cardinals.

Bogaerts would not come cheap for the Cardinals should they look to trade for him. So far in 2022, Bogaerts is slashing .347/.397/.463 with 2 home runs and 12 RBI. Last season, Bogaerts finished 12th in AL MVP voting slashing .295/.370/.493 with 23 home runs and 79 RBI. Acquiring the Red Sox shortstop would give the Cardinals another elite bat at their weakest offensive position, and allow the Cardinals to keep Tommy Edman at second base and platoon DH guys like Juan Yepez, Nolan Gorman, and Albert Pujols as the season goes on.

One of the struggles trading for a guy like Bogaerts is the potential price tag prospects wise for a guy who may leave as a free agent in the offseason. Our own Robert Murray speculated what a potential extension could look like in this article.

Without assurances of an extension, it may take a bargain trade opportunity on the table for St. Louis to be willing to pull the trigger on a trade for the star shortstop. Keep your eye on this one.

Option 2: Tommy Edman

Popular choice among the fanbase, if the St. Louis Cardinals would like to look to internal options to fill the hole at shortstop, second baseman Tommy Edman would slide over there nicely.

Edman has had a nice bounce back season in 2022. After beginning the year batting 9th for the club after a down 2021 and terrible Spring Training, Edman has slashed .277/.372/.420 with 3 home runs, 16 RBI, and a league leading 8 stolen bases so far this year and is now the Cardinals leadoff hitter. The biggest concern the Cardinals have had with moving Edman over to shortstop is losing his Gold Glove production at second base, but his defensive prowess should translate well to shortstop.

The real win of this move to shortstop would be allowing the Cardinals to call up top prospect Nolan Gorman and slot him in at shortstop. Gorman is currently mashing the ball at AAA Memphis, and is awaiting the call to the majors once consistent at bats are available. This move of Edman to shortstop would open the door for the club to begin the Nolan Gorman era.

Manager Oli Marmol appears to be more open to this scenario as the shortstop struggles continue, but it remains to be seen if this is the option the club lands on.

Option 3: J.P. Crawford

Heading into the 2022 season, the Seattle Mariners were a popular pick among experts to finally break their playoff slump and either win the AL West or take one of the AL Wild Cards. The Mariners have started a bit slow though, sitting at 15-18 and already 7 games back of the Astros in first place. There is still plenty of time for the Mariners to turn the season around, but they could end up selling at the deadline.

One Mariner who has not started off slow this season is shortstop J.P. Crawford. Many thought Seattle would go after one of the big name shortstops this offseason, but they opted to allow Crawford to continue holding down short, and he has done a terrific job. Crawford is currently slashing .330/.414/.523 with 4 home runs and 11 RBI so far. His great on base skills and sneaky power from the left side of the plate would be a welcome addition in a Cardinal lineup lacking left handed options.

One thing that may be appealing about Crawford as opposed to Xander Bogaerts is the price tag. Crawford signed a 5-year, $51 million contract with the Mariners before the start of the 2022 season, so acquiring Crawford would give the Cardinals a long term option at shortstop one a very reasonable contract. Even with the contract certainty, the prospect haul required should not be very high, and the Mariners may be incentive to create space for top prospect Noelvi Marte, who projects as a shortstop for the club.

Option 4: Brendan Donovan

Since demoting Paul DeJong, rookie Brendan Donovan has received the majority of the starts at shortstop, and has been nothing short of exceptional in this small sample size.

Called up to the major league club on April 28th, Donovan has proven to be not only a legit utility option for the club, but is now making his case to be the everyday shortstop for this Cardinal ballclub. Donovan has slashed .318/.444/.591 thus far, and has been one of the few bright spots in a lineup that seems to be slumping right now. Donovan looks like he belongs both at the plate and in the field, and if his production continues, it will be hard to keep him out of the lineup.

If the Cardinals opt to use Donovan as their primary shortstop, you may seen Nolan Gorman spilt time between DH with Juan Yepez and 2nd base with Tommy Edman once he receives his call up. Edman or Sosa could get playing time at short with Donovan is in need of an off day.

It seems more likely that Donovan has earned himself a spot on the roster as the super utility option for St. Louis, slotting in at almost any position when someone needs an off day and providing an excellent bat off the bench. But don’t be surprised if the Cardinals allow him to run with the shortstop job for the time being.