St. Louis Cardinals insider gives surprising prediction for the 2025 MLB draft

The St. Louis Cardinals were gifted the fifth overall pick in the 2025 MLB Draft. This will be the second year in a row that the Cardinals will select in the top seven of the draft, a first for the franchise.

With their first-round pick last year, the Cardinals selected utility infielder and one of the best hitting prospects in the class, JJ Wetherholt. It was an easy decision, as JJ slid down to them; this pick was often praised as one of the best in the draft by pundits across the league.

The Cardinals may not get so lucky this year. Ethan Holliday, son of former Cardinal Matt Holliday, is the consensus first overall pick. Behind Holliday rests LHP Liam Doyle, LHP Kade Anderson, LHP Jamie Arnold, SS Eli Willits, and SS Aiva Arquette, among others. The talent near the top of many draft boards is high this year, so whoever the Cardinals choose will likely be a solid player.

Most outlets have the Cardinals linked to prep shortstop Eli Willits. Willits stands at 6'1", and he's coming out of Fort Cobb-Broxton High School in Oklahoma. Willits is a switch-hitter who is more refined as a lefty, but he boasts strong bat-to-ball skills and a good penchant for contact. Scouts see Willits staying at shortstop, but center field could also be an option.

It is peculiar to see the Cardinals linked to a middle infielder, even a high schooler, in this year's draft, given their surplus of middle infielders in Masyn Winn, Brendan Donovan, Nolan Gorman, Thomas Saggese, and JJ Wetherholt. At least one Cardinals insider seems to agree with the notion that the team will draft a position player.

Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch believes that the St. Louis Cardinals will select a position player with the fifth overall pick in the 2025 MLB Draft.

Eli Willits is a legitimate shortstop with plus speed, a solid arm, and a strong hit tool. He would be an excellent pick at the fifth spot, and there's even a chance he could go first overall. But if the Cardinals have the option to pick a pitcher like Jamie Arnold or Kade Anderson, shouldn't they choose that route?

The organization is thin on pitching depth already, and the price of starting pitchers is rising at a far greater rate than position players in free agency. Wouldn't drafting a college pitcher who could reach the majors in a couple of years do more for the organization than drafting a middle infielder like Eli Willits or Aiva Arquette out of Oregon State?

Goold defends his position in a recent chat by saying, "(The Cardinals) see their No. 5 as a chance to also grab an impact hitter. We'll see how it plays out because, yes, there are also top-five pitchers available. But the Cardinals recognize that the opportunity picking that high in the draft for them is to score a hitter they've rarely had access to, and the past two times they have they like the results — (JJ) Wetherholt and JD Drew."

Goold presents a logical point. The last two times the Cardinals selected in the top seven, they chose position players. One of them worked out quite well in JD Drew, and the other is off to a great start as a prospect. Why veer from what's worked thus far with top draft picks?

Well, need should play a role. The Cardinals don't need middle infielders necessarily, even ones who could be three or four (or five) years away. They have ample depth at shortstop, second base, and third base, and Victor Scott II will be roaming center field for the foreseeable future.

If a legitimate starting pitcher like Jamie Arnold or Kade Anderson is available with the fifth overall pick in the 2025 MLB Draft, the Cardinals should choose one of them over a position player.*

*Insert Ethan Holliday caveat here*