Brendan Donovan projected to represent St. Louis Cardinals at the 2025 All-Star game

The St. Louis Cardinals sit at 18-19 on the season and are now riding a four-game winning streak with a 2-1 win on Tuesday night against the reeling Pittsburgh Pirates. An Alec Burleson two-out, two-run single off Pirates' star right-handed pitcher Paul Skenes proved to be the difference in the game. Second baseman Brendan Donovan extended his hitting streak to seven games with a first-inning single. 

Brendan Donovan's early-season surge has gotten All-Star consideration.

It's early, but it appears that the St. Louis Cardinals' front office was wise to shut down trade packages for Donovan. You can make the case that the MVP of the Cardinals' season so far has been the utilityman himself. Donovan is currently ranked fifth among MLB batters with a .333 batting average (first among qualified second basemen) and 16th with a .389 OBP. Only Boston's Kristian Campbell has an equal OBP.  

That hot start has gotten the attention of Bleacher Report's Joel Reuter. In his recent MLB All-Star Game predictions published last Friday, Reuter has Donovan starting at second base and batting eighth for the National League. 

If Donovan's stellar season holds until the Midsummer Classic, the former South Alabama Jaguar would be the Cardinals' first All-Star Game starter since Nolan Arenado in 2023. Donovan would also be the first St. Louis second baseman since Matt Carpenter in 2013 to be elected to the All-Star Game.

There's no question that a nomination for Donovan is a phenomenal achievement and one Cardinals fans should be excited about. On the other hand, Donovan is the only St. Louis Cardinal predicted to make the All-Star game. If this holds, it would be the third straight season in which St. Louis only had one player as an All-Star representative. 

The St. Louis Cardinals are starting to string together a hot streak with series wins over the New York Mets and the aforementioned Pirates. Brendan Donovan has been the driving force behind the Cardinals, and an All-Star game nomination would be a fantastic achievement. Let's hope we can get more St. Louis representatives at this year's Midsummer Classic, unlike the last two years.