Which Cardinals players have the most to prove entering Spring Training?

St. Louis Cardinals v Pittsburgh Pirates
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Paul DeJong


The last man on this list is the man you all probably thought of as soon as you saw the name of this article. One of the biggest stories of the Cardinals' 2022 season was the sharp decline of shortstop Paul DeJong. He has gone from being an All-Star in 2019, to being sent down to Triple-A Memphis last May with a .130 batting average. He eventually returned to the Big League club but didn't fare much better ending 2022 with a .157 AVG.

At Winter Warm Up a few weeks ago DeJong touted that he had been working on his swing all offseason and was ready to get back to his normal form. He'll get his chance as the Cards have already announced a second base committee of sorts to start the season with DeJong getting chances alongside the likes of Nolan Gorman and Tommy Edman. Cardinal fans will be rooting for DeJong in 2023 but his leash at the Big League club will surely be short. If he can't get himself going by the end of May, he may well find himself back in the minors.

Next. Ranking the Cardinals who will benefit from rules changes. dark