Cardinals Non-Roster Invite Named Player to Watch at Spring Camp

The St. Louis Cardinals were certainly busy during the offseason, as they made sure to move all of their top trade chips to kick off their rebuild. Gone are Brendan Donovan, Sonny Gray, Nolan Arenado and Willson Contreras.

The Cardinals have signed a couple of free agents this offseason, so they haven't completely burned their roster down, but there are still opportunities to add more. One thing to watch is who might be a surprise at spring camp and potentially make the Opening Day roster.

Brian Murphy of MLB.com notes that while the Cardinals are still looking for a right-handed hitting outfielder, they might have one in place, and highlighted non-roster invite Nelson Velazquez as somebody to watch in spring training.

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Nelson Velazquez a name to watch

Feb 16, 2026; Jupiter, FL, USA; St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Nelson Velazquez (88) throws a ball during spring training workouts at Roger Dean Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-Imagn Images | Reinhold Matay-Imagn Images

"The Cards are still hoping to add an outfielder with pop -- preferably one who hits right-handed -- before the start of the regular season. Velázquez, who is in camp as a non-roster invitee, checks all of those boxes," Murphy wrote.

"He wasn’t in the Majors last year, but he did slug 30 homers across all levels of pro ball, including 11 dingers in 51 Minor League games. No Cards hitter has exceeded 22 homers in a season since ‘23, so Velázquez’s power potential makes him a good fit for this roster."

Velazquez had a 17-homer season with the Chicago Cubs and Kansas City Royals in 2023, so there is a lot of potential there. While the Cardinals could look into adding another free agent, Velazquez does fit what they are looking for, and they already have him in house, so it can't hurt to see what he can do before the regular season starts.

This would prevent the Cardinals from having to spend more money on an aging veteran. Velazquez is also still relatively young at 27 years old, so he might be just what they're looking for as they assess their options out of spring training.

It might be a long year in St. Louis, but having an extra option like Velazquez can't hurt. It will be interesting to see if the Cardinals decide to add somebody else, but with Velazquez, they already have somebody in-house that could fill the need of a right-handed hitting outfielder with power.

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