Wetherholt's first homer wins game for Palm Beach
With another game to play, JJ Wetherholt didn’t have a lot of time to savor a milestone moment. But he’ll never forget it. The Cardinals’ first-round pick (No. 7 overall) in last month’s Draft, Wetherholt cranked his first professional home run in his sixth career game for Single-A Palm Beach
With another game to play, JJ Wetherholt didn’t have a lot of time to savor a milestone moment. But he’ll never forget it.
The Cardinals’ first-round pick (No. 7 overall) in last month’s Draft, Wetherholt cranked his first professional home run in his sixth career game for Single-A Palm Beach on Wednesday. His seventh-inning solo shot proved to be the game-winner in Palm Beach’s 7-6 victory over Dunedin in the first game of a doubleheader at TD Ballpark.
“I'm just excited,” Wetherholt said. “But I gotta cool down because we have a doubleheader and I need to be ready for the next one.”
It’s been a smooth transition so far for the 21-year-old shortstop, who grew into one of the best collegiate prospects in the country at West Virginia and signed with St. Louis for a slightly above-slot $6.9 million bonus. MLB Pipeline ranked him at No. 4 on the Top 250 Draft Prospects list heading into the event.
Wetherholt has gone 5-for-17 with five runs scored in the six games since joining Palm Beach. He went 1-for-3 with a nine-pitch walk and scored twice in Wednesday's opener. He sent his landmark first homer to center field off a 91 mph four-seam fastball by lefty Kevin Miranda (Blue Jays).
📩 CLICK HERE TO SUBSCRIBE TO BEN'S BIZ
“It’s been a lot of fun, just playing on such a consistent basis,” Wetherholt said. “You can get back into a groove and back into it after the (college) season ended.
"The guys here are really cool. The coaching staff is awesome. It’s been a ton of fun to play. I was swinging the bat pretty well at our place, didn’t have much to show for it. I came here hoping I could put more good swings on the ball. I thought I was having pretty good at-bats today, and then I finally connected on one that went out. That was a super cool feeling.”
Wetherholt had a group of friends in the stands to add to the moment. They had traveled from the Pittsburgh area to Florida for vacation and made the trip to Dunedin to see him in Palm Beach’s doubleheader. They certainly picked a good day to watch him play.
The Baltimore native has been reveling in playing baseball all the time since signing with St. Louis.
"Getting up every day, having some breakfast, grabbing a coffee and going to play some baseball," he said. "Those are the days you dream about as a kid: getting up and only playing ball. So it's been a ton of fun to do."
Wetherholt should get the chance to flourish in the Cardinals system, which is loaded with pitching depth but low on infielders since Masyn Winn took over the starting shortstop job in St. Louis. While Winn is more of a glove-first player with an otherworldly arm, Wetherholt catapulted to the top of prospect lists on the strength of his all-around hitting ability. His battled recurring hamstring issues during his junior season but still posted a .370/.468/.625 slash line over his three years on campus, and entered the Draft as the consensus best pure hitter in the class.
Wetherholt said his goal this summer is “to keep settling in” and gain experience as he adjusts to the pro game. Early results indicate he’s doing just that.
“It’s a different type of game,” he said. “The game speeds up a little bit. You just need to find a way to slow it down, remember why you’re here and keep believing in yourself.”
Joe Trezza is an contributor for MiLB.com.
These 15 moments led to season No. 15 of Minor League road trips
Benjamin Hill travels the nation collecting stories about what makes Minor League Baseball unique. This excerpt from his newsletter is a mere taste of the smorgasbord of delights he offers every week. Read the full newsletter here, and subscribe to his newsletter here.
MiLB podcast crew makes Opening Day predictions
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Everything you need to know for Triple-A Opening Day
First, there was big league Opening Day. Now it's Triple-A's turn to take the spotlight. The Minor League season opens Friday when the Triple-A International League and Pacific Coast League seasons get underway for the first of MiLB’s two Opening Days. And right out of the gates, several of baseball's
Top prospects to watch at Triple-A -- one for each organization
It’s Triple-A’s turn up to bat on Friday. The regular season begins for the Minor Leagues’ highest level one day after the action starts on the Major League side. Fun fact: it’ll be the earliest start to a Minor League season since 1951 (March 27). Double-A, High-A and Single-A will
Here's where every Top 100 prospect is expected to start the season
The 2025 Opening Day prospect roster announcements began last week when the Cubs informed Matt Shaw (MLB No. 19) he was making the trip overseas to compete in the Tokyo Series. Roki Sasaki (No. 1) also received the good news, but his assignment was much less of a surprise. Now
Nationals prospect King joins MiLB podcast
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Here are the 2025 All-Spring Breakout Teams
Fifteen games, several jersey swaps and countless highlights later, the second edition of Spring Breakout has officially concluded – and it lived up to its billing. Of the 16 contests sprinkled across four days, only one game (Dodgers vs. Cubs) was rained out. Coincidentally, the Cubs were one of two
Rox young sluggers aim to bring pop back to Coors Field
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Coors Field may provide the best run-scoring environment in Major League Baseball, but the Rockies haven’t taken advantage of it in recent years. Even without adjusting for Coors, they have fielded offenses worse than the league average the past three seasons, and they scored the fewest runs
Astros brass sees potential in consistently 'underranked' farm system
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- The last time the Astros landed in the top 10 of MLB Pipeline’s farm system rankings was before the 2019 season. Since those rankings expanded to all 30 teams ahead of the 2020 season -- 11 lists in total -- they’ve never ranked higher than
Complete results and highlights from Spring Breakout
The second edition of MLB Spring Breakout is complete, and there was no shortage of highlights from the future stars of Major League Baseball over the four-day showcase. Here's a complete breakdown of the 16-game exhibition:
Southpaw Spring Breakout: White Sox future on display with Schultz, Smith
GLENDALE, Ariz. -- If all goes as planned for the White Sox, left-handers Hagen Smith and Noah Schultz won’t spend much time following each other to the mound in a single game. Schultz, the No. 1 White Sox prospect and No. 16 overall, per MLB Pipeline, and Smith, who is
In first pro game, Rainer offers pop, promise to Tigers fans
NORTH PORT, Fla. -- Bryce Rainer’s pro career consisted of workouts and batting practice until Sunday.
'Me and Brady on the dirt again': House, King reunite at Spring Breakout
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- The 2025 Spring Breakout was a flashback for Brady House and Seaver King. Over 10 years ago, the infielders were travel ball teammates in Georgia who shared the dream of making it to the Major Leagues. Now, they are top prospects in the same organization,
Lambert -- 'an adrenaline guy' -- hoping to be next Mets bullpen gem
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- Ryan Lambert loves throwing hard. He relishes the idea of getting to two strikes and blowing hitters away. “Get me in a game,” Lambert said, “cool things will happen.”
Stewart embraces Spring Breakout: 'What's not to love?'
PHOENIX -- Sal Stewart was one fired-up Reds prospect. On Sunday in the first inning during the organization's 9-7 Spring Breakout win over Brewers prospects, Stewart lifted a 2-2 pitch that sailed over the center fielder's head to the wall. Already not known as a speedster, he stumbled running between
Prospect Peña quietly drawing raves in Brewers' farm system
PHOENIX – Jesús Made was at the top of the Brewers’ lineup for Sunday’s 9-7 loss to the Reds in the finale of MLB’s four-day Spring Breakout, a fitting perch when you consider that the 17-year-old infielder is under a bright spotlight as MLB Pipeline’s No. 55 prospect. Made could
Brecht -- in 1st outing since '24 Draft -- wows at Spring Breakout
GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Sunday's Spring Breakout showcase was the perfect unveiling for Rockies No. 5 prospect Brody Brecht. A right-handed pitcher from the University of Iowa whom the Rockies selected 38th overall last summer, Brecht had a nice collegiate resume, an interesting backstory as a former wide receiver for the
Braves prospects show promise in Spring Breakout
NORTH PORT, Fla. -- As Terry Pendleton prepared to serve as the manager of the Braves prospect team that played the Tigers prospect team in a Spring Breakout game on Sunday afternoon, he said fans should be patient with John Gil and Luis Guanipa, a pair of teenagers who have
Yanks' Lagrange flashes triple-digit heat in Spring Breakout
SARASOTA, Fla. -- There was an audible “Ooh” from the crowd at Ed Smith Stadium, and Carlos Lagrange quickly glanced beyond the right-field wall, checking the velocity of the pitch he’d just thrown in Saturday’s 5-4 Spring Breakout loss to the Orioles. It had registered in the triple digits, and
Bradfield dedicates Spring Breakout performance to late friend
SARASOTA, Fla. -- It was about more than playing in the national spotlight. More than the dinner bet placed with an old college teammate earlier in the month. More than a game. As Enrique Bradfield Jr. slid home to score a run during the first inning of Saturday night’s Spring