6 young players the Cardinals need to prioritize playing time for down the stretch

The St. Louis Cardinals have a 1.9% chance of making the playoffs entering Labor Day, which is actually on the rise after a series win against the New York Yankees this weekend.

Sure, they may still have a chance to make the playoffs, but that should not stop them from prioritizing playing time for young players in the process. There is valuable information the Cardinals can glean from "letting the kids play" down the stretch, and that should be their number one priority as they look ahead to 2025.

Here are six players who need to be given as much playing time as possible down the stretch for the Cardinals to get a feel for what they have in these youngsters.

Luken Baker

Luken Baker is the oldest of this group of youngsters at the age of 27, but he has set to get an extended run at the MLB level to try and make a name for himself. Baker has done about all you can at the minor league level at this point, slugging 86 home runs with an .879 OPS in 318 games for the Memphis Redbirds.

Baker only has 18 at-bats so far since being called up to St. Louis, but his seven walks and two home runs have helped propel his OPS to a sparkling .941 as Baker has been utilized frequently against left-handed pitching. While I am not going to overreact to this small sample size, I do think it is in the Cardinals' best interest to get as many looks at Baker as possible as the season winds down.

It is unclear what the Cardinals will decide to do with Paul Goldschmidt this offseason, but considering Alec Burleson's woes against left-handed pitching, they'll likely want a right-handed platoon option ready in case they need to deploy one with him next year at first base. While Goldschmidt could fit that role, it is hard to imagine him accepting a part-time role next year, and it would also be helpful to save money and go with a cost-controlled option like Baker if he is ready.

"If" is the keyword here. It is hard to say how ready Baker is to handle a key role on a Major League Baseball team, but the only way the Cardinals can find out is by, well, playing him. One of the few blessings of their season-ending this way is that it affords them opportunities to get long looks at guys they would not be able to if they were contending, so I say take advantage of this and let Baker get as many at-bats as possible. Then, assess what you think his future is in the offseason.