Cardinals See 'Big Gap' Shrinking for Masyn Winn, Victor Scott II

The St. Louis Cardinals are going to be relying heavily on young guys this offseason, but that's not a bad thing in the slightest. Well, at least when you have some of the guys the Cardinals do.

Masyn Winn is just 23 years old and already looks like one of the better overall shortstops in the National League. He's the best defensively. It's hard to deny that fact. In 2025, he slashed .253/.310/.363 with nine homers and 51 RBIs even with an injured knee. The year before he was a .267 hitter with 15 homers and 57 RBIs. Now, he's fully healthy and should have more in the tank.

Another guy to be excited about is Victor Scott II. He's 25 years old and is among the best defensive center fielders in baseball and also is electric between the bases. He stole 34 bases in 2025 but was a .216 hitter. Imagine if he was closer to .250? That could happen in 2025. Cardinals manager Oli Marmol gushed about both while joining "Foul Territory."

The Cardinals have a very bright future ahead

Feb 16, 2026; Jupiter, FL, USA; St. Louis Cardinals shortstop Masyn Winn (0) throws during spring training workouts at Roger Dean Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-Imagn Images | Reinhold Matay-Imagn Images

"I'll say this about [Victor Scott II] and Masyn, I think those two guys, there is a big gap between where they are at and what the ceiling is," Marmol said. "And I think both are going to close that gap pretty quickly. Even hearing Masyn talk through his approach this spring compared to a year ago is night and day. He articulated it very well.

"He's like, 'I was trying to hit homers and see how many I could hit. I need to be a guy. I could hit .300 every year. I could drive the baseball when needed but I've got to pick my spots to leave the yard. I can spray the ball all over the field and find different ways to help us win.' When you hear that coming out of his mouth, it gets you excited. He's in the right mindset right now to be able to help us there. I think Vic is making some really good strides."

Oli Marmol believes this was the first offseason that Jordan Walker was able to communicate with a level of maturity that stood out.

"I'm nowhere close to giving up on this kid. He is going to figure it out, and I'm committed to that." pic.twitter.com/ZQZ8iu6KX6
— Foul Territory (@FoulTerritoryTV) March 2, 2026

The Cardinals have a young team. But if guys like Winn and Scott can take a step forward in 2026, St. Louis arguably can get through this rebuild period very quickly.