The St. Louis Cardinals Opening Day lineup is absolutely loaded, as one would expect. Meanwhile, pitching remains an area of concern.
How will the Cardinals lineup up on Opening Day?
Against the Toronto Blue Jays, ace Miles Mikolas will have to be on his game, or Thursday’s contest could turn into an offensive display the likes of which we haven’t seen in quite some time.
St. Louis added the likes of Willson Contreras this offseason, who paid homage to Yadier Molina in his first game as a Cardinal. Contreras is one of the better hitting catchers in all of baseball, but sometimes struggles to manage a pitching staff and throw out runners on the basepaths. His pitch framing has improved over the last few years.
The corner infield spots are set for years to come with Paul Goldschmidt and Nolan Arenado, but beyond that, here’s how the Cards lineup shakes out.
St. Louis Cardinals Opening Day lineup
The Cards Opening Day lineup is rather simple, and goes as follows:
- Brendan Donovan
- Lars Nootbaar
- Paul Goldschmidt
- Nolan Arenado
- Willson Contreras
- Tyler O’Neill
- Nolan Gorman
- Jordan Walker
- Tommy Edman
There isn’t much of a weakness 1-9, but if an opposing pitcher were to attack any portion of this lineup, it would be the bottom. Gorman and Walker are both young players, with the latter making his much-anticipated MLB debut on Thursday afternoon. Walker is the Cards’ top prospect for a reason, though.
Edman can turn around the lineup, as he’s a high-contact hitter who likes to put the ball in play. With the elimination of the shift, Edman should thrive in that role and allow the likes of Donovan and Nootbaar to hit with a runner on more often than not.
Donovan and Nootbaar are great table setters for Goldschmidt and Arenado, who drove in 200-plus runs last year combined. Both are NL MVP candidates for a reason, with Goldy winning the award altogether.