Predicting the Cardinals’ 2028 Opening Day roster as their young core takes over

For all of the talk about how the St. Louis Cardinals will look in 2027, I am far more interested in how things shake out ahead of their 2028 campaign. It's impossible to predict what kind of external opportunities they will have to add, but I do want to take a stab at what their Opening Day roster will look like with who they do have and who may no longer be with the club by that time.

A lot of the pieces are already in St. Louis, but more are to come. On the position player side of things, there are high-ceiling prospects nearing their debut who can fill in at positions of need. When it comes to their pitching, the same is true but on a wider scale. The Cardinals already have a solid group of pitchers available to them at the Major League level, but the wave of exciting, high-upside arms is drawing near, and by 2028, may fill many of the roles of the Cardinals' staff.

Without further ado, let's jump into what the Cardinals lineups, rotation, and bullpen could look like in 2028, without even baking in potential free-agent signings or trades acquisitions. Note: I will reveal players that I think could be traded away by the 2028 season.

Cardinals lineup vs. RHP

1. 2B JJ Wetherholt
2. 3B Rainiel Rodriguez
3. 1B Alec Burleson
4. RF Jordan Walker
5. C Leo Bernal
6. DH Ivan Herrera
7. LF Joshua Baez
8. SS Jesus Baez
9. CF Tai Peete

Bench: OF Josiah Ragsdale, 3B Blaze Jordan, UTL Thomas Saggese, and UTL Bryan Torres

The Cardinals have been pretty clear as of late that they still view Rainiel Rodriguez as a catcher long-term, so this is not me saying Rodriguez will be a "primary third baseman". I very much envision the Cardinals being creative with their matchups by the time 2028 roles around and being able to mix-and-match their options, but when they roll out their "best" lineup vs. RHP, Rodriguez will be at third base.

Masyn Winn is notably absent, and I've been tipping my hand on that as of late. I am not ruling out the scenario where Winn rebounds offensively, wins possibly his third Gold Glove in 2027, and entrenches himself as their shortstop for 2028, but...I do think Baez is their starting shortstop in 2028.

In a very encouraging way, the Cardinals are starting to "run out of seats" on the bus for their young talent. Honestly, if Winn isn't dealt, then I believe one of Herrera or Burleson will be, because it gets very difficult to see how they all get every day playing time once both Rodriguez and Jesus Baez are in town.

Holy cow though - look how deep that lineup looks. Tai Peete, the Arizona Fall League MVP frontrunner, is batting ninth in this lineup as the "second lead-off man". Jesus Baez, who just hit 40(!!!) home runs this last season, is batting eighth. Oh, and Joshua Baez, who just showed his immense power at the Major League level, is batting seventh. My oh my, what a lineup that could be.

It would still be a very young lineup, with six of the nine players having less than two or fewer years of MLB service time and three of them likely still being rookies as well, which brings a level of variance to this group. It could quickly be one of the more dynamic, relentless lineups in all of baseball, and there could be stretches where they struggle a lot as they find their footing as Major Leaguers.

Cardinals lineup vs. LHP

1. 2B JJ Wetherholt
2. C Rainiel Rodriguez
3. 1B Ivan Herrera
4. RF Jordan Walker
5. LF Joshua Baez
6. SS Jesus Baez
7. DH Leo Bernal
8. 3B Blaze Jordan
9. CF Josiah Ragsdale

Bench: 1B Alec Burleson, OF Tai Peete, UTL Thomas Saggese, and UTL Bryan Torres

The Cardinals have been clear that they do not want to platoon Burleson, and if that remains the case, it further complicates the mix and adds more reason for Rodriguez to get used to playing third base...or for the Cardinals to shop Ivan Herrera in a trade. But for now, I'm going to say Burleson at least isn't the primary starter against lefties given his struggles both in 2026 and for his career.

In 2026, the Cardinals faced a left-handed starter in 48 games, meaning even if Burleson sat against every lefty, he'd still be starting 70% of their games. They would likely still mix him in there some, and when he's not starting, he can be the ultimate weapon off the bench when right-handed relievers enter the game.

There's a world where 2-6 in this lineup becomes an absolute murderer's row for left-handed pitching. We've already seen how Walker, Herrera, and Joshua Baez are top-end performers against lefties at the Major League level, and both Rodriguez and Jesus Baez seem ready to join them in that trend.

I decided to have Josiah Ragsdale starting in center field against left-handed pitching, seeing him as a potentially overqualified fourth outfielder who spells Peete, Walker, and Baez whenever needed. Peete has really struggled against left-handed pitching as he's risen through the minor league levels, while Ragsdale has at least been respectable against lefties.

Because Burleson is sitting, Herrera is able to play first base, Rodriguez is able to get behind the plate, and Bernal is able to get off his feet as the designated hitter. Blaze Jordan was over 20% above league average against lefties at the plate in 2026, so they are also able to get his bat into the lineup.

The fun thing is that late in games, the Cardinals could pinch-hit with Burleson, move him to first base, and then slide Herrera (or Bernal if he's playing first base) to catcher and have Rodriguez move to third. Again, I'm giving what I think their "strongest" lineup against southpaws would be, but I'd fully expect them to get creative consistently. And if they start to feel comfortable with Joshua Baez in center field, they could have Herrera or Burleson play in left field to fit Burleson back into the lineup.

Rotation

RHP Tanner Franklin
LHP Liam Doyle
LHP Quinn Mathews
RHP Tekoah Roby
RHP Kyle Leahy

Starting Pitching Depth: RHP Hunder Dobbins, RHP Jurrangelo Cijntje, RHP Jacob Odle, LHP Mason Molina, LHP Cade Crossland, and the arms I have in the bullpen currently.

Wowza! I mean, look at this group. Tanner Franklin and Liam Doyle are two of the best pitching prospects in baseball and have the stuff and makeup to headline the Cardinals' rotation for a long time. Behind them are Quinn Mathews, who was really good in his first taste of MLB action, Tekoah Roby, who looks incredible in his return from injury in the AFL, and Kyle Leahy, who just had a breakout campaign in his first season starting.

In this scenario, I have the Cardinals trading away Andre Pallante, Michael McGreevy, and Matthew Libeartore to replenish talent for their farm system as young arms are graduating to join the MLB roster. And again, I have not even projected a single free agent signing or trade acquisition. So yes, some of these arms likely won't work out, and even so, the Cardinals would likely be in a position to trade those arms to make room for a free agent splash or starter acquired via trade with higher upside.

And look at the projected depth! Even if some of those top five arms flame out or are hurt, there's still Hunter Dobbins, Richard Fitts, Cooper Hjepe, Jurrangelo Cijntje, Jacob Odle, Brandon Clarke, Mason Molina, Cade Crossland, and more that they can tap into.

Bullpen

RHP Riley O'Brien
RHP Gordon Graceffo
LHP Brandon Clarke
LHP Sandro Santana
RHP Richard Fitts
RHP Luis Gastelum
RHP Cade Winquest
LHP Cooper Hjerpe

Minor League Depth: RHP Cal Randall, RHP Randel Clemente, LHP Brycen Mautz, and more.

And then there are names like Hjerpe and Fitts, who could easily be starters, but because of the abundance of talent the Cardinals have, they land in the bullpen here. Again, not ruling out them starting, but I couldn't have a 12-man rotation!

Bonus for you: Let's look at who would still be prospects in the minor leagues for the Cardinals in this scenario, even after all this young talent debuts. In no particular order...

OF Trevor Condon
OF Emmanuel Luna
OF Alexander Frias
RHP Jacob Odle
RHP Teegan Kuhns
SS Sebastian Dos Santos
SS Miguel Hernandez
1B Jack Gurevitch
SS Yairo Padilla
SS Rocco Manisalco
RHP Yhoiker Fajardo
Their 2027 first-round pick (and players from that class)
And more!

All this to say, man, the Cardinals have a whole lot of talent on the way, and 2028 could be a very, very exciting beginning to the next contending era of Cardinals baseball.

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