Cardinals Biggest Achilles' Heel Through 12 Games

The St. Louis Cardinals could be even better if they can find a way to sort out left field.

Apr 7, 2026; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; St. Louis Cardinals second baseman Thomas Saggese (25) returns to the dugout after being thrown out at second base during a stolen base attempt against the Washington Nationals during the second inning at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Rafael Suanes-Imagn Images | Rafael Suanes-Imagn Images

The vibes are high with the St. Louis Cardinals right now but things could be even better.

St. Louis is 7-5 on the season so far and is just one game behind the Milwaukee Brewers and Cincinnati Reds for the top spot in the National League Central. There are few who can make the claim that they thought the Cardinals were going to be this good to kick off the 2026 season.

A lot of positive vibes out there right now certainly have to do with the breakout of young outfielder Jordan Walker. But there's a lot more going on with the club. St. Louis has three starters with a 3.38 ERA or lower. While the bullpen overall hasn't been great, Riley O'Brien and JoJo Romero have combined to pitch 14 shutout innings out of the bullpen across 13 total outings. The offense in general has been pretty good thanks to guys like Walker, JJ Wetherholt, Alec Burleson and Victor Scott II, among others.

One area of the club that still could be better and is the club's Achilles' heel, though, is left field.

How Cardinals' Left Fielders Have Performed So Far

Apr 7, 2026; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; St. Louis Cardinals left fielder Nathan Church (27) reacts after hitting a home run against the Washington Nationals during the eighth inning at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Rafael Suanes-Imagn Images | Rafael Suanes-Imagn Images

The Cardinals had three guys make the club out of camp who can help out in left field: Nathan Church, Thomas Saggese and José Fermín. None of the three is tearing the cover off the ball yet. Nelson Velázquez was someone who was fighting for a job out of camp, but he was sent down to Triple-A. But he's also not tearing the cover off the ball down there either.

Church has played in 11 games and is slashing .156/.182.250 with one homer and four RBIs. He also has 11 strikeouts in 11 games. Saggese has played in eight games, but has been better overall. He is slashing .241/.333/.310 with one RBI, four walks and two doubles. Fermín has played in just two games and is 0-for-2 on the season.

Velázquez has played in eight games down in Triple-A and has been ice-cold going 2-for-27. So, things aren't great for the Cardinals in left field right now offensively. Right now, the best bet may be rolling with Saggese more and seeing if he can turn it up a little more. Of the four options, he's already playing the best.

On another note, Lars Nootbaar, who will get plenty of time in left field at some point, is on the 60-Day Injured List.