3 Cardinals who unlocked their offense following simple adjustments

2025 is a year of transition for the St. Louis Cardinals. It's a period where one of the league's most historic franchises won't be making in-game changes to set the team up for the most success. Instead, manager Oli Marmol will let things play out for several young players.

Through failure (or even success), these young players will make the necessary adjustments to become better hitters. This was on full display in the Cardinals' most recent series against the New York Mets. In the series finale on Sunday, Marmol opted to pitch reliever Ryan Fernandez late in the game. Fernandez allowed three runs on three doubles.

Other yongsters, including Alec Burleson, Jordan Walker, Nolan Gorman, and Masyn Winn will be given a similar leash. Yanking these young players without giving them a chance to adjust and improve won't benefit their long-term development.

Historically, the Cardinals have either sent down struggling hitters/pitchers or opted to trade them only to see these players flourish outside of the organization. Be it Randy Arozarena, Zac Gallen, Sandy Alcantara, or Adolis Garcia, the list of players who weren't given a chance with the Cardinals and were subsequently traded is lengthy. John Mozeliak and his staff are not aiming to repeat past mistakes.

We're only a month into the season, but several players have already made adjustments on the fly only to see them pay off in the immediate future. Coaches Brant Brown, Jon Jay, and Daniel Desclaso have been instrumental in helping players identify flaws in their approaches. These three coaches have provided solutions.

These 3 Cardinals have been outspoken about seeing a flaw in their approach only to see their adjustments pay off immediately.

SS Masyn Winn

Masyn Winn had a rough spring training. He slashed .080/.145/.0.80 with 16 strikeouts in only 50 at bats. He was a non-factor leaving Jupiter, and there was some concern surrounding the sophomore's offensive potential following a strong rookie season.

Those concerns grew larger after Winn failed to log a hit in his first five games of the year. He had a 38.1% strikeout rate and a wRC+ of -41. Winn's miserable spring continued into the regular season, and his struggles near the bottom of the lineup were worrisome.

All of that changed when Winn worked with hitting coaches Brant Brown and Brandon Allen during a rain delay on April 1st against the Los Angeles Angels. He went to the batting cages during the delay and came back a changed man. While viewing film with Brant Brown and Brandon Allen, Winn found where the difference in his swing was from 2024. "It’s getting close,” he said. “It’s getting close to being something scary.”

Since then, Winn is slashing .386/.429/.467 with a 25.7% K rate and a home run. Whatever adjustment the team's shortstop made has worked quite well.

1B Willson Contreras

Similarly to Masyn Winn, Willson Contreras also started the year off cold. He was hitless in his first five games, and it took him 14 games to hit first home run of the year. Contreras's batting average failed to exceed .200 until the team's most recent game on Wednesday against the Atlanta Braves.

Contreras is a vital bat for the Cardinals lineup this year. The impetus of moving the former catcher to first base was primarily to unlock a new level of Contreras's offense. That seemed to be the case following a spring training where he slashed .405/.511/.640 with five extra base hits.

Following a 13-inning loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates on April 9th, Contreras mentioned that he was close to turning a corner. "I’m proud of the way I’ve been handling myself through this stretch. I know sooner or later, everything will change," said Contreras.

Since that game, Willson has a .304/.373/.478 slash line with two home runs and six runs batted in. The club's first baseman felt that something was close, and he wasn't wrong.

2B Nolan Gorman

For Nolan Gorman to have a successful 2025, he would have to learn to lay off breaking balls down and away and fastballs up. By avoiding these pitches or adjusting to them, he would be able to lower his strikeout rate, something that has been a struggle for him throughout his career.

Gorman has avoided strikeouts by and large, but he was still just shy of the results the team needed out of him. He was placed on the 10-day injured list with a strained right hamstring, and that certainly set back his offensive progress. In the six games after his injury, Gorman slashed .067/.211/.344, and he struck out seven times to only three walks.

After the Cardinals' game against the Atlanta Braves on April 22nd in which Gorman hit a three-RBI double to give the club a late lead, the left-handed slugger spoke about how he's making adjustments. "I feel good and I’ve been seeing the ball better lately,” said Gorman. “I think the last game in New York [on Sunday] I figured some things out and I didn’t go down a rabbit hole of swing adjustments. So things are definitely going in the right direction.”

This is the third time a hitter for the Cardinals has said that he's close to turning a corner and has done just that. Clearly, the work that new hitting coach Brant Brown has been doing with these key hitters is paying dividends already. Hopefully, the offense can carry the club in the same way it did in the first couple of weeks of the year.