Cardinals' Opening Day roster shockingly omits biggest spring training breakout

There's one big surprise with the Cardinals' Opening Day roster.

Josh Jacobs

Feb 27, 2026; Jupiter, Florida, USA; St. Louis Cardinals left fielder Nelson Velazquez (88) returns to the dugout against the New York Mets during the first inning at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images / Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

The worst-kept secret in baseball was made official today: JJ Wethreholt is on the St. Louis Cardinals Opening Day roster.

The Cardinals released their official Opening Day roster today, and while their selections mostly lined up with what we had been expecting for over a week now, one name was surprisingly snubbed from the group after a powerful performance in camp.

Nelson Velazquez did not make the Cardinals' Opening Day roster.

The Cardinals did not keep outfielder Nelson Velázquez on their Opening Day roster, instead opting to go with Thomas Saggese and Jose Fermin as their right-handed bat options for the outfield, and then Nathan Church, Yohel Pozo, and Ramon Urias to round out their bench to start the year.

Velazquez, who the Cardinals signed to a minor league deal this offseason and was a non-roster invite to spring training, really caught eyes in camp with the right-handed power he displayed for their outfield group. In 42 at-bats, Velazquez slashed .357/.449/.667 with four home runs. Prior to this year, Velazquez proved to be a slugger for the Chicago Cubs and Kansas City Royals but struggled to stick at the Major League level.

While I'll be the first to tell you spring training stats really don't mean much, the surprise comes from the fact that the Cardinals have been very open about their desire to have a power bat in their outfield group, and Velázquez seems to have figured some things out that could make him a solution to those woes in 2026 and possibly beyond.

Now, their decision does allow both Saggese and Church to make the roster and have more regular roles, something that does make sense for a rebuilding club. Had Velazquez had a regular role in St. Louis, one of Saggese or Church was likely to ride the bench if they both made the roster, and that isn't great for their development. I had thought the Cardinals would send Saggese to Memphis for regular at-bats until a spot opened up, but they opted to send down Velazquez instead.

The Cardinals' full Opening Day roster is as follows:

Rotation (5):
LHP Matthew Liberatore
RHP Michael McGreevy
RHP Dustin May
RHP Kyle Leahy
RHP Andre Pallante

Bullpen (8):
RHP Matt Svanson
RHP Riley O'Brien
LHP JoJo Romero
RHP Ryne Stanek
RHP George Soriano
RHP Matt Pushard
LHP Justin Bruihl
RHP Chris Roycroft

Catchers (3):
C/DH Ivan Herrera
C Pedro Pages
C/1B Yohel Pozo

Infield (5):
1B Alec Burleson
2B JJ Wetherholt
SS Masyn Winn
3B Nolan Gorman
INF Ramon Urias

Utility (2):
UTL Thomas Saggese
UTL Jose Fermin

Outfielders (3):
OF Jordan Walker
OF Victor Scott II
OF Nathan Church

The Cardinals are set to open up the 2026 season at home against the Tampa Bay Rays on Thursday.

Josh Jacobs

Josh Jacobs has been the Site Expert for Redbird Rants since October 2022. Josh began writing for FanSided in December 2021 and has also held roles as a Contributor for Redbird Rants and was formerly the Site Expert for Rays Colored Glasses. Josh is a huge St. Louis Cardinals fan and is passionate about providing thoughtful coverage and for Cardinals Nation. Josh’s experience includes covering Cardinals’ events like Winter Warm-Up, building relationships with Cardinals players, prospects, and employees, and guest appearances on local radio and podcasts. Josh is also the host of the Dealin’ the Cards podcast and co-host of “Philosophical Differences” with KMOV’s Brenden Schaeffer. You can find Josh on Twitter @joshjaco98 for even more opinions and coverage of the team.