JJ Wetherholt looks to end Cardinals' 24-year award drought

Top prospect JJ Wetherholt has officially been promoted to the big league roster and stole the show on Opening Day for the St. Louis Cardinals. The inclusion of Wetherholt on the initial roster is not surprising, but it does come with sky-high expectations. For the second baseman, some of these expectations could put the Cardinals' name back on a trophy for the first time in over two decades.

JJ Wetherholt is looking to become the first Cardinals Rookie of the Year since Albert Pujols.

While JJ Wetherholt is far from the first rookie to crack an Opening Day roster, he does provide fans with some excitement in a season that may not be full of wins. By all accounts, the second baseman is ready for the majors with his advanced approach at the plate. The division rival Pittsburgh Pirates have some intriguing infield talent of their own, but it appears they are playing some service time games with their prized prospect, while Wetherholt looks to stick in the majors for years to come.

With Konnor Griffin starting in the minors, JJ Wetherholt can and should be considered one of the favorites in the National League for the Rookie of the Year award. Besides Mets pitcher Nolan McLean, Wetherholt has the best odds to win the honor, and doing so would etch his name alongside a franchise icon. If the first-round pick were to win the award, he would be the first Cardinals player to take home the Rookie of the Year since Albert Pujols did so in 2001. That season by Pujols, though, will be extremely difficult for anyone to match, let alone Wetherholt, who is known for his smooth gap-to-gap approach rather than 30-homer power.

In that season, 21-year-old Albert Pujols hit an incredible .329/.403/.610 with 37 homers and 130 RBI for the second-place Cardinals. Along with the easy win for the first-year player award, Pujols was also named an All-Star and Silver Slugger, and received enough votes to finish fourth in the NL MVP award voting. Hard to imagine that was just the stepping stone for what would be a Hall of Fame career for Pujols.

While that type of performance would all but guarantee Wetherholt locking down the award, that level of output is machine-like and would be unfair to place upon the West Virginia standout's shoulders. Expected to hit at the top of the St. Louis order, Wetherholt's case for the honor will likely rely on his batting average sitting near .300 while setting the tone and scoring runs for the Cardinals' lineup. Additional value will come from Wetherholt's legs, as he is predicted to log double-digit steals from the leadoff spot.

In the first rebuild season under Chaim Bloom, any honors would be welcomed for the St. Louis organization, as the team has been rightfully hesitant to put any sort of timeline on their return to contention. If Wetherholt can prove to be what fans have hyped him up to be and the rest of the Cardinals' lineup takes a step forward in 2026, we could get a small glimpse into the future of the team.