Victor Scott II's newfound comfort in all three phases has him rising with Cardinals

It's one thing to have the tools to impact all three phases of the game as a position player; it's a whole other thing to actually do it. The St. Louis Cardinals have that kind of player in Victor Scott II this year.

During his rookie campaign, Scott failed to live up to the hype in every area of the game. While most of the attention was on his inability to compete with big league pitching at the plate, that was to be expected. No, I don't think people thought it would go as poorly as it did offensively, but it was not fair to expect much from him there.

People did have high expectations for Scott's defense and baserunning, though, and both of those lagged behind as well. Scott was a slightly above-average defender in center field last year while stealing just five bags in 53 games.

While things did look better during his late-season run with the club, Scott's 40 wRC+ on the season and underwhelming production defensively and on the basepaths left a lot to be desired going into the offseason. When spring training rolled around, Scott looked far more comfortable than he did the year prior, but we needed to see if that would translate to the regular season.

So far, so good for the Cardinals' center fielder.

Victor Scott II is comfortable and confident in every area of his game this year for the Cardinals

Scott has taken major strides in every area of his game this year, turning him from a net negative last year into one of the most productive players on the team so far in 2025.

At the plate, Scott has posted a 119 wRC+ to begin the year. Personally, I felt like even becoming just a slightly below league-average hitter this year would have been a step in the right direction and more than adequate for where he is at in his development. But so far, Scott has been more impactful with the bat than any of us imagined he would be.

There are a variety of factors that are playing into that. Scott raised his walk rate significantly this year from 3.9% in 2024 to 10.1% to begin 2025. He's also cut down his strikeout percentage to 24.4% and seen a major uptick in his ISO, posting a .133 thus far.

Speaking of that power creep, Scott's attack angle on baseballs is so much better in 2025. Scott ranks in the 88th percentile in LA Sweet-Spot% (41%), so when he's hitting the ball in the air, he's doing so with the optimal angle compared to most in the game. He's also forcing pitchers to give him pitches to hit, ranking in the top half of hitters in Chase% (23.8%).

In the field, Scott has been one of the best defensive center fielders in baseball this year, ranking in the 99th percentile in OAA (6), and has improved his arm strength by over three miles per hour. Scott is also tied for fourth among all center fielders in fielding run value (4). Scott's improvement with his jumps (ranked 34th in baseball last year and now seventh in 2025) is a major reason why he's getting to more baseballs this year.

And of course, Scott is flying on the base paths and causing mayhem for opposing pitchers. Scott's 11 stolen bases this year are tied for fifth in all of baseball, and he's one of only two players to steal more than 10 bases so far this year without being caught a single time. Scott's ability to swipe bags with ease and be a threat to score any time a ball is put in play has added a whole new layer to the bottom of the Cardinals' order.

The Cardinals have had such a difficult time of landing a consistent outfield group for the last five or so years. Lars Nootbaar has cemented himself as their left fielder of the future, and I think it is safe to say that Scott is well on his way to claiming the center field job for a long time as well. The hype train came too soon last offseason, but count me in on the group who is enamored with the production and potential of Scott long term.