Cardinals reign supreme with NL Utility Silver Slugger win after teammate battle

The St. Louis Cardinals received plenty of love in this year's Silver Slugger Awards ceremony. They had two players nominated for the award at the utility position in Brendan Donovan and Alec Burleson.

Both Donovan and Burleson played multiple innings at varying positions. Donnie played most of his games at second base, but he also played left field fairly often, along with some appearances at shortstop. Burly split his time fairly evenly between first base, left field, and right field. The two players' versatility helped manager Oliver Marmol put together a lineup on a day-to-day basis.

The two Cardinals went head-to-head in voting for the Silver Slugger at the utility position with Jake Cronenworth of the San Diego Padres, and the winner was announced this evening on FanSided's The Baseball Insider's Podcast

Breakout slugger Alec Burleson takes home the Silver Slugger for the utility position in the National League.

Alec Burleson bested Jake Cronenworth and his fellow Cardinal, Brendan Donovan, for the Silver Slugger Award at the utility position in the National League.

Burleson broke out this past year offensively. He finished the year with a .290/.343/.459 slash line, 18 home runs, 69 runs batted in, and 28 additional extra base hits (26 doubles, 2 triples). He posted a 125 OPS+, the highest of the three finalists. He beat Donovan and Cronenworth in home runs, RBIs, slugging percentage, and batting average.

Alec Burleson used the 2025 season as an opportunity to display his offensive prowess. In a year in which the Cardinals were desperate for consistent offense and power, Burleson answered the call and delivered. The only month in which he posted an OPS less than .859 was in March/April (.602) and August (.713). He was extraordinarily consistent and vital to the lineup throughout the year.

Burleson wasn't seen as a "runway" player to start the year. In fact, he feel behind Nolan Gorman in the depth chart early in the season. Burly didn't let this disappoint him, and he turned it on in May to win a regular starting spot.

“This had happened to me before, so I know what it takes to make sure it doesn’t spiral when you do get your opportunities, and the best way to take advantage of those,” Burleson said in June regarding his flexible starting spot up to that point. “It’s more mental than physical. I want to play every day, and I need to put myself mentally in a spot where I am playing every day.”

Burleson changed his approach at the plate this year, increasing his walk rate and boosting his power output. His .169 ISO was the highest of his career, and his barrel rate went from 6.5% in 2024 to 9.5% in 2025. Burly saw a jump in average exit velocity, squared-up percentage, and bat speed this past year, all leading to improved numbers across the board.

Alec Burleson has been mentioned as a potential trade candidate this winter, but his growth last year should make the Cardinals wary in dealing the lefty slugger. The team would be capitalizing on his value, but a trade like that may come back to bite the organization down the road.

With the Cardinals entering a down period in their competitive window, it's important for the organization to find tentpole bats. While Alec Burleson has a ways to go in establishing himself as a top hitter in the National League, his first Silver Slugger is certainly a step in the right direction.