Cardinals News: JJ Wetherholt rewarded, Nick Anderson decision, legend wants to coach

The St. Louis Cardinals open up the 2025 season on Thursday ,and their final roster decisions were announced as the team headed north from Jupiter. Here is some quick news from the final weekend before the regular season begins.

JJ Wetherholt will start the season in Double-A Springfield.

The Cardinals have been aggressive with top prospect JJ Wetherholt since drafting him seventh overall in the 2024 first-year player draft. They invited the 22-year-old to major league camp, where he received playing time in 10 of the team's games and held his own against established big league players. While the batting average was nothing special, Wetherholt displayed great plate discipline, drawing more walks (six) than strikeouts (five). He also flashed his other offensive tools when he smacked a home run in his first spring game and stole three bases without being caught.

Wetherholt enters the 2025 season as the league's 23rd-best prospect, and the Cardinals decided to continue to fast-track his development. After spending 29 games with Single-A Palm Beach, Wetherholt will start the season with Double-A Springfield. There are not currently any plans to shift Wetherholt away from his primary position at shortstop, but it is of note that he played second base during his stay in big league camp. It is possible that the organization continues to move the infielder on a similar path as pitcher Quinn Mathews and he could easily be in Memphis for the second half of the season if he shows well in Springfield.

Nick Anderson stays with the organization and will begin the year in Memphis.

When the Cardinals brought in reliever Nick Anderson, it was viewed as a low-risk move with a potentially high reward. The minor league pact came with an invite to major league camp, and his track record appeared to give him a direct path to the 26-man roster. When healthy, Anderson can be a dominant arm near the back end of the bullpen, and the Cardinals were taking the chance on the righty getting back to his early-career success.

Spring Training was not kind to the 34-year-old, however. In seven games, Anderson only finished 5.2 innings and gave up eight runs on 11 hits with three walks and six strikeouts. Last, St. Louis announced they were sending the righty to minor league camp, but the veteran had an upward mobility clause in his contract, meaning any other team in the majors could claim Anderson and put him on their 40-man roster. It was announced that Anderson was planning to exercise that clause if another organization wanted his services, but the other 29 teams passed on the opportunity. Anderson will now head to Memphis, where he will serve as a depth option and look to show his health and effectiveness against younger competition.

Vince Coleman said he would love to come back to the Cardinals as a coach.

After an offseason where some former players have been trashing the organization for their lack of care for their alumni, one Cardinals Hall of Famer would love to head back to the team as a coach. Vince Coleman, the six-time league leader in stolen bases, had a recent interview with Randy Karraker and Brooke Grimsley, and he stated his desire to get back to the organization and help with baserunning. He specifically mentioned Victor Scott II, who led the minor leagues with 94 stolen bases in 2023, as someone he would like to work with.

Coleman also mentioned that analytics could take part of the blame for why there has been a decrease in stolen bases. The 63-year-old had the most success of anyone stealing third base and would love to bring that aggressive approach to St. Louis. Last season, the Cardinals had the fourth-fewest stolen bases in the National League, a strange change from an organization that always valued baserunning. Coleman noted it is not just basestealing that is important, but also the ability to break up a double play or take the extra base on a hit. The organization has not yet responded to Coleman's public desire to coach, but it would not be surprising to see him around the team as a special instructor at a minimum.