Cardinals’ rookie sits securely in the midseason top 25 rankings originally appeared on The Sporting News.
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JJ Wetherholt first made a name for himself as a high school baseball player in Pennsylvania. He went undrafted out of high school, but went on to play his college ball at West Virginia University.
He would go on to spend three years there, winning the Big 12 Baseball Player of the Year Award during his sophomore year, getting more eyes on him.
He would catch the attention of the St. Louis Cardinals, who selected him seventh overall during the 2024 MLB Draft, and it did not take him long to make his way through the minors.
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Cardinals’ rookie sits securely in the midseason top 25 rankings
Last year, after playing a good portion of the season in Triple-A, he was named the Cardinals’ Minor League Player of the Year. And that would propel him up to making the Opening Day roster this season.
Since his MLB debut, he surely has not disappointed. He’s currently hitting .259/.357/.401 with 12 home runs, 34 runs batted in, and nine stolen bases.
He’s not just a top rookie, but a top player in the entire MLB right now, as Bleacher Report’s Kerry Miller gives him the 12th spot in his latest midseason rankings list.
“Wetherholt is starting to run away with the NL Rookie of the Year race while helping to keep the Cardinals in the thick of the NL wild card race. His homer rate has slowed down considerably after clubbing seven by the end of April, but he entered Tuesday batting .327 over his last 25 games, with nearly three times as many hits as strikeouts. He is also playing exceptional defense at second base, battling Pete Crow-Armstrong and Bobby Witt Jr. for first place in the majors in both fielding run value and outs above average.”
Wetherholt isn’t just doing it with the bat; he’s also been exceptional out in the field. He’s a big reason why the Cardinals are exceeding far past expectations this season.
