JJ Wetherholt, who has been on the Injured List since Aug. 30 with right wrist tendinitis, made major strides in his rehabilitation process on Friday and Saturday and is hoping to be back in action with the Cardinals during this final home stand at Busch Stadium.
Having battled through serious hamstring injuries throughout his junior season at West Virginia, St. Louis Cardinals standout rookie JJ Wetherholt admitted that he’s far more familiar with playing in pain than he ever wanted to be. So, while he wanted to try and push through the right wrist tendinitis that severely hampered his swing, his history ultimately taught him to seek out a path that would allow him to get healthy.
As much as Wetherholt despises sitting out games, he is looking forward to being healthy when he returns – hopefully at some point during the Cards’ final homestand, he said.
“I had some more serious injuries in college, but this (wrist injury) is just part of the game and I’ve got to find ways to push through it,” said Weatherholt, who took major strides in his rehab program on Friday and Saturday and could be back with the Cards by next weekend’s games against the Nationals.
“I mean, it’s really all up to how I feel and how about go through things (during the rehab process),” Wetherholt continued. “Obviously, you don’t want to not play, and you want to play (again in 2026). But if your body hurts too much, you just can’t play. But I’m trying to do everything I can to get back.”
Wetherholt went on the Injured List on Aug. 30 and was seen by a wrist specialist in Phoenix on Sept. 1 where the diagnosis of tendinitis was confirmed. He was given a pain-killing injection and placed in a soft cast for a week to immobilize the joint.
Wetherholt took batting practice off the pitching machine on the field at Busch Stadium on Friday. The rookie is scheduled to hit off the pitching machine again on Monday and go through his entire pregame routine on Tuesday – batting practice, fielding grounders and running the bases – and then a course of action will be determined by Wednesday, Cardinals’ manager Oliver Marmol said. A Minor League rehab assignment might be difficult with Double-A Springfield wrapping up its season this week and Triple-A Memphis closing its season next week.
“I’m progressing day by day, and the (medical staff) definitely has a timeline, but I’m not really sure what it is,” Wetherholt said. “I’ll just listen to them, give honest feedback about how I feel and then they will make the call of when I’m ready to go.”
Wetherholt, 23, was the Cardinals’ top Minor League prospect in 2024 and 2025 after being selected with the No. 7 pick in the 2024 MLB Draft. He has blossomed into a franchise cornerstone in his first MLB season, slashing .242/.343/.370/.713 with 17 homers, 14 doubles, 48 RBI and 14 stolen bases in 15 tries in 130 games played.
The native of Mars, Pa., has done all of that while quickly becoming one of the best second basemen in baseball. In 115 games at second base, he has made just two errors and has been a part of 72 doubles plays in 491 total chances. Also, he hasn’t made an error in 96 2/3 innings at shortstop.
Wetherholt’s 22 Outs Above Average rank third in MLB, trailing only the 25 of Cubs Most Valuable Player candidate Pete Crow-Armstrong and the 23 from Royals superstar Bobby Witt Jr. His 22 Outs Above Average are eight more than the next closest National League second baseman (Pittsburgh’s Brandon Lowe, 14).
The Cardinals showed their trust and belief in the future of the sure-handed middle infielder by rewarding him with an eight-year, $112.5 million contract that could be worth as much as $132 million with incentives. The contract includes no opt-out clauses for either side, meaning he will likely be wearing the birds on a bat across his chest for much of the next decade ahead.
The wear and tear of the long season has seemed to take its toll on the 5-foot-9, 190-pound Wetherholt. Since the break for the MLB All-Star Game, he slashed just .201/.313/.305/.618 with four doubles, four home runs and 12 RBI in 40 games. By comparison, Wetherholt slashed .259/.356/.399/.755 with 10 doubles, 13 home runs and 36 RBI in his first 90 games of the season as the Cardinals lead-off hitter.
Wetherholt said he just wants to resist the temptation of returning too soon and injuring his wrist even more than it was already bothering him throughout August.
“The nature of the tendinitis is that to get that fully out of the (wrist), you need like 1 ½-to-2 months to get it fully gone,” he said. “There’s definitely been some strides from a pain level and that’s what we were shooting for.”
