3 things for Cardinals fans to look forward to for 2027

Despite missing the playoffs for four consecutive seasons and staring at a losing record for their third straight season, St. Louis Cardinals fans have a lot to look forward to this winter, especially in comparison to recent offseasons. While the Cardinals weren't expected to fight for a playoff spot, they remained in the National League Wild Card race for a few months behind breakout stars, great defense and pitching that performed better than initial expectations. Looking ahead toward 2027, here are three things Cardinals supporters should be excited about.

3. Young starting pitchers with ERAs below 4

While pitching was expected to be the biggest question mark for the Cardinals, many of their young starters performed much better than expected. The trio of Michael McGreevy, Andre Pallante and Kyle Leahy combined for 29 wins and 32 quality starts while carrying ERAs below four.

Hunter Dobbins and Quinn Mathews have pitched much less but deserve recognition as well. The duo has combined for five quality starts and five wins in 16 starts. Unfortunately for Dobbins, he'll have a long recovery ahead of him after undergoing elbow surgery. However, it's worth noting that all five pitchers mentioned here are under the age of 30.

2. Defense

Anchored by the middle infield, the St. Louis Cardinals flexed their muscles on defense once again this year. As it stands, rookie second baseman JJ Wetherholt ranks second in Outs Above Average (OAA) among all major leaguers (23), trailing only Pete Crow-Armstrong of the Chicago Cubs (26). Wetherholt's teammate and last year's Gold Glove winner Masyn Winn isn't far behind, ranking in a tie for fourth with 18 OAA. Only two of 10 eligible Cardinals have registered negative OAA to this point, according to Baseball Savant.

1. Young sluggers

Most exciting of all, Cardinals fans should be eager to see a duo of corner outfielders develop into some of the most feared power hitters in the National League, those being Jordan Walker and Joshua Baez. Walker stole the show at the Home Run Derby and has 28 home runs and 100 RBIs to his name. As for Baez, he hit seven long balls in 100 at-bats, including three in his big league debut.

St. Louis supporters shouldn't be quick to forget about Alec Burleson, who finally got an opportunity to start every day at first base. He didn't look back, with 23 home runs, 112 RBIs and nearly 40 doubles. Ivan Herrera and rookie JJ Wetherholt should be right up there as well, combining for 35 home runs and 119 RBIs. With these five on the roster next season, the Cardinals will have no shortage of pop.

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