Cardinals’ youth movement surging as JJ Wetherholt, Nathan Church fuel early breakout

Welcome to the youth movement, St. Louis! The Cardinals are finally relying on young bucks full-time, and it's paying dividends. Most of the bright lights have been shining on star rookie JJ Wetherholt, who is on track to earn the silver medal in second base WAR. Residing in his shadow, however, is another Cardinal who has been slowly creeping up on the Rookie of the Year race. 

Take me to Church

Nathan Church came up in 2025 and posted an abysmal .504 OPS in 27 games. Now, he’s nearing his games played total from last year with an OPS of .774 and an OPS+ of 120. 

Not only is he competing at the plate, but his glove has become the death of many a baseball. Church has a rather mediocre showing in fielding metrics, but his flair for the big moment passes the eye test. He has already brought back two would-be bombs in 2026’s infancy. 

The potent combination of Wetherholt and Church is already producing history before the calendar strikes May. 

A rookie duo for the ages 

In a tweet from Cardinals on-field reporter Dani Wexelman, she pointed out an interesting anecdote about a Wetherholt/Church milestone. 

The left-handed heroes became just the sixth rookie duo ever to each smash five home runs before May. The last being Franchy Cordero and Christian Villanueva for the Padres in 2018. Let’s hope the St. Louis rendition ages slightly better. 

Extended time looms over current Cardinals 

With recent projections of a lucrative long-term deal for Wetherholt arising, the Cardinals might have to cut a check. If St. Louis waits, they risk watching the price tag soar. 

Not only would an extension calm the storm around Wetherholt’s provocative rise (it gets the people going), but it would also give the Cardinals financial clarity for years to come. One of the best things about the modern Atlanta Braves’ lineup is its stability. The org knows the exact amount of money they’ll be paying most of their starting nine for the next five years or so. It’s a lot simpler to piece that puzzle together. And look what happened? It took one year for the Braves to relaunch their takeover of the NL East and gut-punch the rival Mets in tandem. I’m sure The Lou would love to humble the deadly Cubbies lineup that recently rattled off ten straight wins. 

Church, Jordan Walker, and Ivan Herrera are doing their best to make a run at extension talks as well. The Cardinals once lacked a core to build around. Now, St. Louis has a troop of ready-to-go baby-faced big leaguers ascending the league's ranks. Cardinal baseball Mach II is in its infancy. The last Cardinals to nest at Busch for a prolonged period netted multiple championships. St. Louis should strike while the iron is hot and start building their next World Series contender now. 

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