The St. Louis Cardinals used the seventh overall selection in last year’s Major League Baseball Draft to select West Virginia shortstop JJ Wetherholt. On Monday, the Cardinals told Wetherholt that he would be joining the Memphis Redbirds, their Triple-A affiliate. Wetherholt hit .300 in Double-A Springfield this season and spent last year in A-ball with the Palm Beach Cardinals.

Wetherholt will be participating in the MLB All-Star Futures Game on Saturday. A week following the announcement that Wetherholt would be headed for the Futures Game, the Cardinals opted to assign their top prospect to Triple-A, putting him just one promotion away from fulfilling a lifelong dream.

With Masyn Winn looking to be the Cardinals’ long-term shortstop, Wetherholt will likely shift positions upon arrival, and the Cardinals likely will not make the call this season unless Nolan Arenado is traded at the deadline. With Arenado still around, the Cardinals have limited spots for their surplus of infielders.

Wetherholt is the highest overall prospect the Cardinals have had since Jordan Walker was ranked No. 4 in 2023, and Wetherholt was the Cardinals’ highest draft selection since selecting J.D. Drew in 1998.

Wetherholt was in the running to be the first overall pick at the start of last year’s NCAA season before falling to seven for the Cardinals to snag him. There is a ton of hype surrounding Wetherholt, and Cardinals’ fans hope that he is the next superstar to don the “birds on the bat” when he arrives in St. Louis.

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