Cardinals' JJ Wetherholt Ranked Among Best MLB Players, Ahead Of Aaron Judge, Juan Soto

Wetherholt is having a huge rookie season, but is his ranking on ESPN's list fair?

Aug 12, 2026; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; St. Louis Cardinals second baseman JJ Wetherholt (26) hits a single against the Philadelphia Phillies during the fifth inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

St. Louis Cardinals second baseman JJ Wetherholt has exceeded the lofty expectations laid on him entering his 2026 rookie season.

The 23-year-old is the NL Rookie of the Year frontrunner, combining a steady bat with incredible defense.

Wetherholt is not only in line to possibly capture the Cardinals' first Rookie of the Year honor since 2001 but was also recently named the team's 2026 Heart and Hustle Award winner.

Has the 2024 seventh overall draft pick been one of the top 50 players in baseball this year though?

According to ESPN MLB experts, yes.

ESPN revealed its "MLB Rank 2026 in-season update" on Thursday, with Wetherholt being placed 32nd.

Most importantly for St. Louis fans though is that after the Cardinals had no representatives on ESPN's pre-season top 100 list, the team now has two players on the countdown.

Wetherholt was the top St. Louis representative on the list and is joined by All-Star outfielder Jordan Walker, who was ranked 45th.

The former is not only ahead of Walker, but some big-name MLB superstars.

Wetherholt Narrowly Ranked Better Than Division-Rival Paul Skenes

Aug 11, 2026; Miami, Florida, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Paul Skenes (30) throws against the Miami Marlins during the first inning at loanDepot Park. Mandatory Credit: Rhona Wise-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

ESPN noted that the current top 50 list takes into account the players' "overall impact on the 2026 season," so guys like New York Yankees three-time AL MVP outfielder Aaron Judge were negatively impacted due to injury.

That shouldn't take away from Wetherholt's magical rookie campaign.

Wetherholt has played in 115 of the Cardinals' first 121 games this year and in addition to Judge (42nd), is also ranked ahead of reigning NL Cy Young Award winner Paul Skenes (33rd), five-time All-Star Juan Soto (35th) and two-time NL MVP Bryce Harper (40th), among others.

Unlike Judge and Soto, Harper and Skenes have been available all season and have simply been outperformed by St. Louis' youngster.

Wetherholt's 4.3 Wins Above Replacement (WAR) have him tied for 12th among all position players. Harper has appeared in each of the Philadelphia Phillies' 122 contests in 2026 but entered Thursday with 2.3 WAR.

Despite being tied for the most starts in MLB this season with 25, the Pittsburgh Pirates ace is at just 2.1 WAR. That's well down the leaderboard for pitchers and a far cry from Skenes' 8.0 WAR in 2025.

If baseball fans don't know the name JJ Wetherholt yet, they certainly will this fall after he likely wins the NL Rookie of the Year Award.