Cardinals Gold Glover Has Quietly Replaced Yankees' Paul Goldschmidt As Team's Leader

The St. Louis Cardinals' dreams of seven-time All-Star Paul Goldschmidt hoisting the World Series trophy while sporting the birds on the bat came to a heartbreaking end over the offseason.

Despite being one of the Cardinals' top leaders during his tenure with St. Louis from 2019-2024, Goldschmidt was forced to seek a deal with another club this past winter. He ultimately signed a one-year, $12.5 million contract with the 27-time World Series champion New York Yankees.

Although it was painful moving on from the beloved five-time Silver Slugger, the Cardinals have moved on and rely on an unsung hero to lead the way for this year's youth-laden St. Louis roster.

"With the Cardinals losing veterans Paul Goldschmidt, Lance Lynn and Kyle Gibson in the offseason, some wondered where the leadership would come from for St. Louis," MLB.com's John Denton reported Thursday. "In comes (Brendan) Donovan, a natural-born leader from his strict military upbringing. As he’s done for the first three years of his career, Donovan has led with his actions and his work ethic."

Donovan is batting .375 with 18 hits including two home runs, 10 RBIs and a .978 OPS in 48 at-bats across 12 games played for the Cardinals this season.

"He wasn’t bothered in the slightest by a mediocre spring and enters Thursday tied for third in Major League Baseball in hits with 18," Denton continued. "His hitting helped the Cardinals become the only team to score at least four runs in each of their first 11 games of the season. The Cardinals tend to feed off the attitude and steadiness that the gritty second baseman provides."

Ironically, Donovan and Goldschmidt are tied for third place in hits among all the league's sluggers -- sharing the spot with Houston Astros seven-time Silver Slugger Jose Altuve and National League Central foe Chicago Cubs outfielder Seiya Suzuki.

Based on how prolific the Cardinals' offense has been to start their 2025 season -- ranking third in runs scored (72), second in hits (124) and batting average (.278) and fourth in OPS (.788) -- it's safe to say that Donovan's leadership has been effective.

The 162-game MLB season is long, so there's no guarantee that the Cardinals will sustain their red-hot start on offense as the playoffs inch closer. However, if Donovan continues to lead the way and the rest of St. Louis' lineup follows, there's a legitimate chance the rebuilding franchise could reclaim the NL Central throne for the first time since 2022.

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