Handing out team awards at the one-third mark of the year for the St. Louis Cardinals

Following Monday's game against the Baltimore Orioles, the St. Louis Cardinals are officially one-third of the way through the season. They sit in second place in the National League Central with a 30-24 record, just three games behind the Chicago Cubs. If the playoffs were to start today, the Cardinals would be in with the final Wild Card spot in the National League.

This isn't how the season was supposed to go, and that's awesome.

The retooling Cardinals are playing at levels that few people expected. Several players have led the charge, and they're worthy of awards 33% of the way through the season. An honorable mention should go to the coaching staff here, particularly manager Oliver Marmol. Marmol has managed to take a roster that is depleted from last year to being a division contender this year. That shouldn't go unnoticed.

Which St. Louis Cardinals players are worthy of awards so far?

Most Valuable Player - Brendan Donovan

Brendan Donovan leads all qualified Cardinals in batting average (.328, also the sixth-best figure in all of baseball), on-base percentage, slugging percentage, wOBA, wRC+, and fWAR. He's been an all-around superb offensive player to start the year.

Donovan's versatility on the defensive end has also proven quite valuable to the Cardinals. He's played 39 games at second base, 12 in left field, and six at shortstop. He's been above average at second, average at shortstop, and slightly below average in left field, according to Outs Above Average and Defensive Runs Saved. Donnie has been the Cardinals' most valuable player, and it isn't really close.

If Brendan Donovan can continue producing at these levels, he'll certainly be an All-Star, and he may even receive some down-ballot MVP votes.

Cy Young - Matthew Liberatore

This one is unexpected. Most fans would have thought that Sonny Gray or Erick Fedde would be leading the club's rotation so far, but the young lefty Matthew Liberatore has risen to the challenge after being given full run in the rotation this year.

Libby leads the Cardinals' starters in ERA (2.73), FIP (2.53), and fWAR (1.7). He's walked only eight batters in 59 innings, and he's allowed only three home runs. Liberatore has been dominant to start the year. His ERA ranks seventh among qualified left-handed starting pitchers throughout baseball. Liberatore put in the work this offseason to be ready for a starter's role, and he's been the Cardinals' best pitcher to start the year.

Most Improved Player - Victor Scott II

Victor Scott II was battling all spring for a starting role with the 2025 Cardinals. He did just that with an exceptional Spring Training, and he hasn't taken his foot off the gas so far.

Scott finished his rookie 2024 season with a .179/.219/.283 slash line and 42 strikeouts in only 155 plate appearances. To be fair, he could really only go up from there.

This year, Scott is slashing .273/.346/.373 for a .719 OPS and a 102 OPS+. He's hit 13 extra base hits, including two home runs and a triple, and he's swiped 15 bags already. Scott is off to a hot start on the offensive end, and his defense has surpassed it.

The speedy center fielder has amassed six Outs Above Average and five Defensive Runs Saved so far this year, and he's made several Gold-Glove caliber catches.

Reliever of the Year - Kyle Leahy

If "most important pitcher" were an award, Steven Matz would have a shot at that. However, this award goes specifically to a reliever, and Matz has been flexed around this year.

Closers are normally the recipients of this such award throughout baseball, but the Cardinals' best reliever this year has undoubtedly been Kyle Leahy. Leahy's 2.15 ERA leads all qualified Cardinals relievers, and he's already thrown 29.1 innings this year. He's on pace to throw nearly 90 innings in 2025. Marmol will have to use Leahy less often down the stretch if he wants him to stay healthy and strong for the marathon that is Major League Baseball.

Leahy has stranded 81.1% of batters, and he's been exceptional at getting hitters to ground out this year. He doesn't strike many batters out, but when Leahy has been in the game, he's been exceptional. Marmol has become more comfortable with the young righty, and Kyle has been employed in high-leverage situations more and more as the season has drawn on.

Gold Glove - Victor Scott II

I already touched on Scott's defense, but here's a chance to go a bit deeper with analysis. He has prevented a team-leading six runs according to Baseball Savant. Scott also has a 95% success rate on his catches. Scott has caught all of his three-star (51-75% catch rate) opportunities. He has an 82.4% catch rate on balls that are caught between 0 and 95% of the time. That's exceptional, and it's the third-best rate among qualified outfielders.

Victor Scott II's arm strength also ranks in the 70th percentile in baseball. He gets great jumps on baseball, as his "jump" value on Baseball Savant ranks eighth among all outfielders.

Giving Victor Scott II this award shouldn't discount the defensive efforts of the rest of the team, especially Masyn Winn and Nolan Arenado. Jordan Walker and Willson Contreras have also made great strides this year defensively.

Silver Slugger - Ivan Herrera

This was another easy decision. Ivan Herrera has been the Cardinals' best offensive player bar none.

Among players with at least 80 plate appearances on the team, Herrera leads all Cardinal hitters in batting average (.370), on-base percentage (.442), and slugging percentage (.658). He's slugged five home runs already, and he's tied for second in RBIs this year with 25. Ivan Herrera has consistently gotten the big hit for the Cardinals.

Without his bat in the lineup, the Cardinals are a different team. Ivan Herrera has been the team's best hitter, and it isn't very close.