Insider Boldly States Cardinals Could Have Top NL Offense In 2025; Is Claim Valid?

Could St. Louis shock a lot of people this upcoming season?

Sep 2, 2023; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; St. Louis Cardinals right fielder Jordan Walker (18) celebrates with center fielder Lars Nootbaar (21) after hitting a two run home run against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the seventh inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images | Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

Expectations for the St. Louis Cardinals to succeed this upcoming season are low but not everyone is convinced that the 11-time World Series champions are headed for failure in 2025.

Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak neglected to complete any trades this winter to aid the club's rebuilding efforts and did not make any significant moves to bolster St. Louis' big-league roster.

Despite this year's roster being nearly identical to last season's squad, an insider recently claimed that the Cardinals offense could emerge as one of the National League's best in 2025. Could St. Louis be a dark-horse candidate to reclaim the National League Central throne from the Milwaukee Brewers?

"It’s probably unreasonable to expect all of Nolan Gorman, Lars Nootbaar and Jordan Walker to meet and exceed projections this coming season," Belleville News-Democrat's Jeff Jones wrote early Friday morning when outlining potential outcomes for the Cardinals 2025 season. "If all three assert themselves to the levels the Cardinals believe they can attain, then they might well jump up to being one of the top offenses in the National League."

Gorman, Nootbaar and Walker are former Cardinals' top prospects who have failed to meet expectations set upon them since quickly climbing their way through St. Louis' farm system.

Nootbaar has showcased great potential throughout his four-year career with the Cardinals but the most significant hindrance to his development as a major leaguer is that he can't remain healthy -- his career high is 117 games played in 2023.

As for Gorman and Walker, both young sluggers possess tremendous offensive power but they've struggled to consistently produce, leading to multiple demotions to Triple-A Memphis.

Fortunately, the Cardinals hired hitting coach Brant Brown earlier this offseason to help St. Louis' lackluster offense establish a new identity for 2025.

It's too early to predict that the Cardinals will have a top NL offense in 2025, especially considering how powerful the league is. Still, hopefully, Brown's influence on youngsters such as Gorman, Walker, Nootbaar, Alec Burleson and Victor Scott II will gift the best fans in baseball with a resurgent season from their beloved franchise -- perhaps an unexpected return to the playoffs could be on the way.

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