4 Cardinals who should have a larger role in 2025, 3 who should not

If Victor Scott II is with the big league club, it should be as their starting center fielder

If Victor Scott II is on the Cardinals' Major League roster, he should be the starting center fielder. If they do not think he is ready for that role, then Scott needs to be in Memphis getting those everyday at-bats and the chance to develop further as a center fielder.

I'm not in the camp that the Cardinals need to move Michael Siani or Scott this offseason. Both can coexist on this roster. My only problem with having both around will be if the Cardinals decide to roll with Siani in center field but keep Scott on the bench in St. Louis.

Siani is one of those guys who is more valuable to your club than he is another. He's not going to get the Cardinals anything substantial in return in a trade, but we've seen what kind of impact he can have on this team when called upon. Siani is the prototypical fourth outfielder with how St. Louis has built its roster, but they also know they can trust him every day in center field if Scott is not ready.

If Scott is ready though, he must play. Scott's offensive ceiling is higher than Siani's, and while he's not the defender that Siani is, Scott could get there one day. And we all know what Scott can do on the bases, and while Siani is fast, he's not impacting the game on the basepaths like Scott can.

Barring some roster moves, the Cardinals bench should be Siani, Baker, Saggese, and one of Ivan Herrera or Pedro Pages. While the Cardinals' bench in 2024 was mostly a non-factor, their bench in 2025 could help swing ball games for them, and that is something to be excited about.