Cardinals Notes: Jordan Walker Arrives, Bullpen Flops, JJ Wetherholt is the Future

The St. Louis Cardinals have been one of the most fun teams in baseball so far.

Apr 17, 2026; Houston, Texas, USA; St. Louis Cardinals right fielder Jordan Walker (18) hits an RBI single during the first inning against the Houston Astros at Daikin Park. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images | Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

May is here and the St. Louis Cardinals are five games above .500. Who saw that coming?

There were many around the league down on St. Louis entering the 2026 season. Before the season kicked off, there were plenty of people around baseball expecting that the Cardinals would be near the bottom of the National League Central standings and among the worst teams in baseball overall. Not us, though. We've been preaching confidence that this club is underrated. Before the season, ESPN projected that the Cardinals would go 70-92, for example.

Sure, there were significant changes this past offseason with Nolan Arenado, Brendan Donovan, Sonny Gray, and Willson Contreras traded, but the club arguably didn't have a massive drop-off because there were young guys ready to come in and contribute, like JJ Wetherholt.

Now, May is here and the Cardinals look like one of the better overall teams in the National League. Here are three storylines to follow around the team after the first month of the season.

Jordan Walker's Ascension

Apr 25, 2026; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; St. Louis Cardinals right fielder Jordan Walker (18) reacts after hitting a single against the Seattle Mariners during the third inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images | Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

Walker is finally here. The 23-year-old is in his fourth season in the majors and looks like the guy who was among the top overall prospects in the game before the 2023 season. He's slashing .284/.354/.552 with nine homers, 23 RBIs, four doubles, and 12 walks. His advanced metrics may be even better. Walker is here.

Bullpen Struggles

Apr 30, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; St. Louis Cardinals relief pitcher Matt Svanson (49) pitches against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the ninth inning at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images | Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

The only negative for the Cardinals right now is the bullpen. Right now, the Cardinals have the 26th-ranked bullpen ERA in the league at 5.15. Matt Svanson specifically has struggled with a 10.26 ERA in 15 appearances. On Friday, the Cardinals promoted Jared Shuster to help in the bullpen. That's all the club needs right now to really take a step forward. St. Louis' rotation and offense have both been good.

JJ Wetherholt Is The Future

Apr 30, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; St. Louis Cardinals second baseman JJ Wetherholt (26) fields a ground ball against Pittsburgh Pirates designated hitter Ryan O'Hearn (not pictured) for an out to end the fifth inning at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images | Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

Wetherholt already looks like a superstar. He is the Prince Who Was Promised. The 23-year-old has seven homers, 16 RBIs, four stolen bases and is slashing .256/.378/.479 in 31 games played. On top of that, he's in the 97th percentile in outs above average. At the end of the day, Wetherholt is exactly the guy the fanbase hoped he would be when he made the team out of camp as the Cardinals' No. 1 prospect. The Cardinals should be all over a long-term extension with the young infielder right now as fast as possible.