Joshua

Baez

Baez made a major statement this spring, slashing .333/.417/.762 with three homers, five RBI and a 6/2 K/BB ratio in 24 plate appearances, leading fantasy managers to clamor for his inclusion on Cardinals’ Opening Day roster. Unfortunately, that’s not the case. He should debut at some point during the 2026 campaign, but that makes him a difficult stash in mixed leagues to begin the season.

Bae vlobbered a 416-foot home run at 109.4 mph off the bat, which now gives him home runs in three straight games. The 22-year-old slashed .287/.384/.500 with 20 homers and 54 stolen bases in 117 games between High-A Peoria and Double-A Springfield last season and has shown that he belongs this spring. There is a good chance that he’s an everyday starter for the Cardinals at some point over the summer.

Wetherholt has an opportunity to break camp on St. Louis’ season-opening roster with a strong performance in Grapefruit League play and possesses the advanced hit tool and emerging power skillset to be a colossal fantasy difference-maker at a relatively weak second base position group. The 23-year-old top prospect batted .306/.421/.510 with 17 homers and 23 steals in 109 games in the upper minors last season and could split time between third base and the keystone with defensive wizard Masyn Winn occupying shortstop. It feels like only a matter of time before he ascends to the top of manager Oli Marmol’s lineup card as a top-of-the-order spark plug. The other interesting name to watch is power/speed combo threat Joshua Baez, who broke out with a 16-homer, 34-steal campaign at Double-A Springfield last year. Here’s the full lineup: Winn (SS), Alec Burleson (1B), Nolan Gorman (3B), Pedro Páges (C), Wetherholt (2B), José Fermín (LF), Nathan Church (CF), Baez (RF) and Blaze Jordan (DH).

Baez is the biggest name to know for fantasy purposes after putting together a breakthrough campaign last season where he blossomed into one of the premier slugging prospects in the game, slashing .287/.384/.500 with 20 homers and 54 stolen bases across 117 games between High-A Peoria and Double-A Springfield. It’s only a matter of time before he’s making some real noise as a power/speed combo threat in St. Louis.