4 players the St. Louis Cardinals need to extend soon

The Cardinals would be wise to extend these four players as soon as possible

There is nothing more stratifying than watching your own club's players succeed and blossom into impact players. The St. Louis Cardinals are a club that has multiple of these players on their Major League roster.

Whenever players, especially early in their career, begin to become legit players in this league, there becomes chatter about what the long-term future of that player could look like for their team. One team that has begun to set the bar for retaining their own talent is the Atlanta Braves. They've got guys like Ronald Acuna Jr., Ozzie Albies, Sean Murphy, Matt Olsen, Michael Harris II, and Austin Riley locked up on long-term contracts. Each of those players was able to get long-term security for themselves financially, while the Braves were able to get cost certainty for the next decade and get their own talent on cheaper contracts.

The Cardinals have found mixed results with these kinds of extensions over the last decade. Matt Carpenter's first extension was a brilliant move for the club, while his second extension was horrible for their payroll. Paul DeJong's contract has mostly been a dud, even with his resurgence this year. Carlos Martinez's contract made sense at the time, and he performed for parts of it, but eventually fell from grace due to a multitude of injuries.

When these contracts are given to the right players though, they can really benefit the organization long-term and open up flexibility for championship-level moves in the future. Here are four players the Cardinals would be wise to lock up as soon as possible to maximize this window they are in.

Nolan Gorman

I mean, who wouldn't pay the man right now?

As of May 20th, Nolan Gorman ranks 2nd in all of baseball in slugging percentage (.618), 4th in OPS (1.000), 5th in RBI (36), and 6th in home runs (12), all while showing major improvement in areas of weakness and looking like a true slugger at the plate.

Strikeouts were a huge issue for Gorman in 2022, but he's seen his strikeout percentage drop from 32.9% to 24.2% this season while his walk rate has risen almost four points to 12.4%. He got beat on high fastballs constantly last season, yet has found a way to do damage against those and the breaking balls he loves to mash.

His defense has improved this year as well. While he'll likely never be a top-end defender at second base, he's begun to minimize his mistakes at the position while adding some highlight reel plays to his repertoire as well.

Left-handed bats like Gorman's don't come around very often and have the ability to transform a lineup, and the Cardinals would be wise to lock him down for a very long time. At just 23 years old, it's crazy to think about the kind of hitter Gorman could be in his prime, and the Cardinals' are going to want to make sure his prime years are spent in St. Louis.

Paul Goldschmidt

This should also come as no surprise to anyone, as Paul Goldschmidt has followed up his 2022 National League Most Valuable Player performance with another elite season so far.

Goldschmidt is slashing .302/.400/.527 with a 154 wRC+, 7 home runs, and 23 RBI while on pace for over an 8 WAR season, which would be better than his 2022 clip. Goldschmidt will be turning 36 in Septemeber, but he's showing no signs of slowing down any time soon.

By all indications, Goldschmidt loves being a Cardinal and would welcome finishing his career as one. His contract does end after the 2024 season though. The Cardinals should begin those conversations this season or next offseason, looking to add another one or two years onto his deal to ensure he remains a Cardinal. Goldschmidt should be able to continue to play first base for the club for the next few seasons, but could even move into more of a DH role if needed.

Goldschmidt is likely a future Hall of Famer and has proven year after year that he knows what it takes to succeed at a high level. Extending older players can get you into trouble, but assuming Goldschmidt isn't going to be asking for a long-term deal or an insanely high AAV, working to keep him in St. Louis beyond 2024 is a must.

Tommy Edman or Brendan Donovan

I love both Tommy Edman and Brendan Donovan, but I feel like the club can likely only resign one of them long-term.

Assuming Nolan Gorman takes the role as the primary second baseman long-term, or even at least someone who plays there a lot, and Masyn Winn becomes the shortstop of the future here soon, it gets hard to find clear roles for both Edman and Donovan on the club, especially if they are both making more than contract renewal or arbitration money.

Both players provide the Cardinals with awesome defense at multiple positions and do so while bringing their own unique skill sets to the plate as well. Neither player is a superstar, but both are the essential "glue guys" that you need on your team to have success.

Personally, I think Brendan Donovan may be the better extension candidate while Edman may be an extremely valuable trade chip in the future. Again, this is assuming Winn pans out, but Edman is a few years closer to free agency than Donovan, likely requiring more dollars to extend him. Donovan also seems like a more natural fit for the true utility man role, while Edman thrives best in the middle infield. Lastly, I think Edman could really help shore up another area of their roster in a trade, which is valuable if they truly have this elite middle infield depth.

Extending either player would be great for the organization though, but I would prioritize the first three players on this list before any more here.