Victor Scott II hopes to catch Cardinals' eye among other prospects in the Dominican

The St. Louis Cardinals are heading into the offseason set at multiple positions on the field and plenty of excitement surrounding the minor league system. In the spots that are not yet settled, the Cardinals are going to be sorting through their in-house options to kick off the 2027 season.

Third base and center field are two of those positions and while the hot corner is up for grabs, center field is set to be Nathan Church's spot for now. Church took over the starting spot after Victor Scott II failed to take a step forward after the bat for the second consecutive season. After VSII ceded the job, the speedster spent the vast majority of the year in Memphis before getting an honorary roster spot when big league rosters expanded in September.

Victor Scott II will be joining other Cardinals players in the Dominican this winter

His usage signaled pessimism in his future with the organization, but it is not for lack of effort from either player or team. After struggling in his rookie season, Scott retooled his swing at Virginia Tech last offseason in hopes of making better contact. The time spent back at his college facilities created a sense of hope among the front office, but the results never followed. The Cardinals finally pulled the plug despite the elite defense Scott provides in the outfield and now have to decide how to work him onto the team next year.

After receiving a total of 11 at-bats upon his recall, VSII knows he has to prove himself again this spring. Beyond just the work in the cages, the Cardinals need to see the speedy outfielder get on base in games in order to unlock his game-breaking speed. Scott will have his first opportunity to do so this winter as he will be joining the Aguilas Cibaenas in the Dominican Professional Baseball League.

LIDOM is typically used for big league teams to send their prospects to get some offseason work in outside of the United States. The six teams in the league play 50 games through December and wraps up in enough time to get the players a quick break before heading to their various spring training sites. The talent level varies, with players like VSII who have big league service time sharing the field with prospects from all minor league levels.

Even if Scott has a standout showing in the Dominican, the former minor league stolen base champion will have an uphill battle at playing time in St. Louis. The Opening Day outfield looks to be Joshua Baez in left, Church in center, and Aaron Award finalist Jordan Walker in right. That could leave a fourth outfielder spot open for VSII but without the bat, he would still struggle to get at-bats with the lefty-hitting Church and power bats in the corners.

VSII will be playing most of the 2027 season at the age of 26, so there is still plenty of time for the hardworking outfielder to find a role somewhere. In the St. Louis system, there are more intriguing names like Chase Davis, Tai Peete, and Josiah Ragsdale rising up the ladder, so next year could be VSII's last chance of making a big league impression. It could end up being that his best-case scenario is playing his way into a trade in order to avoid any awkward divorce from the team later.

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