Predictions for the St. Louis Cardinals 2023 season

Henry Fitzgerald (@henryfitz16 on Twitter)

MVP: Nolan Arenado

Arenado has finished in the Top 8 of NL MVP voting in 6 of his 10 seasons in the Major Leagues. I think that Areando will build upon his strong 2022 season by winning his 11th consecutive Gold Glove and winning the NL MVP Award for the first time in his illustrious career. 

Cy Young: Miles Mikolas

Fresh off a 2yr/$40m contract extension, Mikolas is primed to be the heavy lifter of this Cardinals’ pitching staff. Mikolas was an All-Star last year and looked strong in Spring Training this year: striking out 8 batters across 12 innings pitched and allowing 0 earned runs. This prediction is barring a Shohei Ohtani addition in July. 

X-Factor: Tyler O’Neill 

What if 2021 Tyler O’Neill shows up this season? Where in this lineup do you bat him? What a tremendous problem that would be to have. A healthy and productive O’Neill lengthens the Cardinals' lineup significantly and is one way I see this team competing with the big spenders in the National League this year. 

Two-sentence team evaluation:

The Cardinals have an exceptional mix of MVP-level talent, tantalizing young players, and organizational depth. Starting pitching looms as a large and real question mark but on paper, this team should cruise through the once-again-soft NL Central. 

Bold Prediction: Nolan Gorman takes Brendan Donovan’s job by July 1st, hits 30+ home runs, and makes the All-Star Team

Gorman had a productive spring and I expect him to take a step forward this season. If he can develop more plate discipline specifically with elevated fastballs I think an All-Star appearance is in reach. Despite an up-and-down rookie year in 2022, Gorman showed flashes of being a middle-of-the-order masher with 35+ Home Run power.