Ranking the Cardinals' 10 most important young players for their future

#5 - Nolan Gorman

Talk about a player who has flipped the script among most fans in such a short time.

Last year, Nolan Gorman went from a prized prospect to almost everyone's favorite asset to package in trades. His rookie season wasn't ideal, but it wasn't bad either. He flashed the power in a real way and looked like he had a ton of potential as a big bat in this league.

While Gorman was only 5% above league average at the plate last year, even with a little slump as of late, Gorman is 41% above league average in 2023. He's getting on base 50 points higher than last year and raised his slugging percentage 100 points as well.

Even Gorman's defense has improved this year. He's by no means a great defender, but he has become competent and should continue to grow in that.

Gorman could end up being the best player on this list, but the combination of ceilings and positional need for other guys put them above Gorman. While Gorman has an incredible ceiling, his streakiness could hold him back from being truly one of the best lefty bats in the game. But even this season, Gorman looks like an All-Star and should be one for many seasons to come.