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2023 St. Louis Cardinals player grades: The Starting Nine
With the 2023 MLB officially over, it is time to analyze each player's season with the St. Louis Cardinals
We are finally here! The end of what is regarded as the worst St. Louis Cardinals season in over 30 years. Many fans have not experienced a time like this and are happy that it is over. Every Cardinals fan has already turned the page and is looking forward to the 2024 season. Before we let you turn the final page, let's look over every player's season and grade them. Let's start with the starting nine (with DH).
C Willson Contreras:
Willson Contreras arguably had the most interesting season of his career in 2023. From being blamed for the pitching woes of a detrimental staff, to being considered an outfielder going forward in the future, to raking all season and being slept on. One thing is for certain: Contreras can face adversity better than anyone. He welcomes the challenges and turns them into big moments. He played as advertised and only the front office is to blame for not pursuing an option better fit for them.
Overall Grade: B
1B Paul Goldschmidt:
Short-term memory fans will tell you that Paul Goldschmidt is washed and should’ve been traded at the deadline. But why??? He was not his MVP self from 2022, but how do you expect him to repeat that? Goldy has a good season with a slash line of .268/.363/.447 (.810 OPS, 120 OPS+). He has played in over 90% of the games this year and has accumulated a 3.4 WAR. Did he have stretches of questionable ABs? Yes for sure he did. But he has had month droughts multiple times in his career which is corrected by months of tormenting pitchers. It is just the player he is, and you just have to accept that.
Overall Grade: B
2B Nolan Gorman:
Gorman produced power numbers most of the season that have had every Cardinals fan excited. We are finally getting what has been hyped for years. That comes with a sacrifice. He has been mediocre at second base. He only has 5 errors, but accounts for -4 DRS/yr. Much more work to do with Ozzie Smith next spring training. On top of that, he has an above-average OPS but is carried by his slugging percentage. His strikeout percentage is at 31.9% which is around his MLB career average. But to get him to the next level of his development, he needs to focus on his plate discipline.
Overall Grade: C+
3B Nolan Arenado:
Nolan looked to be his career-average self for most of the season. But over the final month, Arenado is batting .184/.242/.246 over 114 AB. This man looks lost and hopefully can be found going into Spring Training. With 2023 being a lost season and most of the season has been meaningless games played, it should still be noticed how poorly Arenado has been this season. Even with a Hall of Fame career, this season is his worst so far and shouldn’t be ignored.
Aging eventually catches up to you, and maybe it has for Nolan Arenado. This was a decent season for any player in MLB. But for one of the top players in the game and your most expensive asset….gotta expect more moving forward.
Overall Grade: B-
SS Tommy Edman:
Tommy did an excellent job in filling the shortstop position over the past few seasons. Maysn Winn is ready to take over which leaves Edman without a starting spot …again. 2023 was a big season for Edman as he snuck in and claimed the starting CF job. Tommy took everyone by surprise and showed off his athleticism in CF which now puts Carlson's fate with the team in jeopardy and ends any dream Tyler O’Neill had of becoming the next centerfielder.
The biggest flaw for Tommy is that he has been below average at the plate, and arguably had his worst season at the plate. With a 91 OPS+, Tommy will need to start hitting the ball with force to keep himself a threat in the lineup.
Overall Grade: C+
LF Tyler O'Neill:
What a waste of time. The front office has given this guy opportunity after opportunity and he continues to show that he provides no value to the organization. He has played in only 72 games due to constant injuries and has produced a slash line of .231/.312/.403 (.715 OPS, 94 OPS+) while also providing 0 DRS/yr in the OF. The organization has a revamp ahead of them this off-season to get the team back into contention. One of the earliest moves needs to be moving on from Tyler O’Neill.
Overall Grade: D-
CF Lars Nootbaar:
NOOOOOOOOOT!
Now that the hype is over, hopefully, fans can see the player Nootbaar actually is. He is a consistent player who probably has reached his ceiling of potential….which is not a bad thing! He is a good player who hits above average (115 OPS+) and plays good defense (3 DRS/yr). Most fans want Noot to be a superstar and see his Statcast metrics to back up their opinions. You have every right to because his Baseball Savant page is mostly red. But he has played to his career average with every stat for 3 years straight. Noot is Noot, and that's all there is to it.
Overall Grade: B
RF Jordan Walker:
The prodigy. The manchild. The kid with more to prove.
Walker had a rookie season that you cannot ask much more from. He slashed .276/.342/.445 (.787 OPS, 114 OPS+) with 16 HR, 51 RBI, and 7 SB. He did not stand out in any specific asset of the 5 tools to baseball, but he was consistent all season and looks like an established big leaguer. His WAR is -0.1 due to his defense which needs serious attention. But Walker is only 21 years old. We are just getting started with the kid. In just a few more seasons, we will get to see a star in the making.
Overall Grade: B-
DH Alec Burleson:
Burleson had the most to prove going into 2023 in my opinion. With the outfield being extremely competitive for starting spots and position depth, it was anyone's for the taking. Burly is known for his bat and has the potential of becoming the lefty thumper the Cardinals have been missing since Matt Adams. Burly pretty much showed nothing to offer in 2023. He had a slashline of .244/.300/.390 (.691 OPS, 87 OPS+) with -0.8 WAR.
On top of the poor hitting, Burly produced -12 DRS/yr in the OF. So not only can he not field which limits his positions on the field, but he could not hit above league average! Many players will be considered for roster consideration next season. The team needs lots of pitching help and it is highly expected that the Cardinals will be trading player depth to obtain it. Expect Burly to be in those discussions.