| JJ Wetherholt | |
|---|---|
| St. Louis Cardinals | |
| Shortstop / Second baseman | |
| Born:September 10, 2002 Baltimore, Maryland, U.S. | |
Bats: Left Throws: Right | |
| Stats at Baseball Reference | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
|
Jonathan David "JJ" Wetherholt (born September 10,2002) is a Korean-American professional baseball shortstop and second baseman in the St. Louis Cardinals organization.
Wetherholt attended Mars Area High School in Mars,Pennsylvania. [2] He went undrafted in the 2021 Major League Baseball draft and enrolled at West Virginia University to play college baseball for the Mountaineers.
As a freshman at West Virginia in 2022,Wetherholt played in 54 games (making 53 starts) and hit .308 with five home runs,39 RBIs,17 doubles,and 15 stolen bases. [3] [4] That summer,he briefly played in the Northwoods League for the Madison Mallards with whom he batted .368 over 12 games. [5]
As a sophomore in 2023,Wetherholt garnered national attention. [6] [7] [8] He played in 55 games and batted .449 with 16 home runs,sixty RBIs,and 36 stolen bases. [9] He was named one of five finalists for the Dick Howser Trophy. [10] [11] He was also named the Big 12 Conference Baseball Player of the Year. [12] [13] [14] Following the 2023 season,he played collegiate summer baseball for the Chatham Anglers of the Cape Cod Baseball League. [15] [16] He also played for the USA Baseball Collegiate National Team. [17] Wetherholt injured his hamstring four games into the 2024 season,and missed over a month. [18] [19] Over 36 games,he batted .331 with eight home runs and thirty RBIs. [20]
| Legend | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | Games played | AB | At Bats | R | Runs |
| H | Hits | HR | Home runs | RBI | Runs batted in |
| BB | Base on balls (walks) | SB | Stolen bases | AVG. | Batting average |
| OBP. | On-base % | SLG. | Slugging % | OPS | On-base plus slugging |
| Year | School | AB | GP | R | H | 2B | HR | SLG. | RBI | AVG. | SO | OBP. | SB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | West Virginia | 208 | 54 | 53 | 64 | 17 | 5 | .471 | 39 | .308 | 43 | .411 | 15 |
| 2023 | West Virginia | 225 | 55 | 67 | 101 | 24 | 16 | .787 | 60 | .449 | 22 | .517 | 36 |
| 2024 | West Virginia | 124 | 36 | 30 | 41 | 8 | 8 | .589 | 30 | .331 | 17 | .472 | 6 |
| Total | 557 | 145 | 148 | 206 | 49 | 29 | .625 | 129 | .370 | 82 | .467 | 57 |
Wetherholt was selected by the St. Louis Cardinals in the first round with the seventh overall pick of the 2024 Major League Baseball draft. [22] On July 20,2024,Wetherholt signed with the Cardinals on a $6.8 million contract. [23]
Three days after signing his professional contract with the Cardinals,Wetherholt was assigned to the rookie-league Florida Complex League Cardinals roster on July 23. He was quickly promoted to Single-A Palm Beach Cardinals of the Florida State League on July 30,with whom he played the remainder of the season. [24] During the final week of the 2024 regular season,Wetherholt was named the Florida State League player of the week from September 2–9. [25] Wetherholt was also a key contributor in the subsequent playoff rounds,highlighted by a two-run triple in the seventh inning of the decisive championship game to help Palm Beach win their first Florida State league title since 2017. [26] Over 29 games for the season,Wetherholt hit .295 with two home runs and twenty RBI.
Wetherholt was assigned to the Double-A Springfield Cardinals of the Texas League to open the 2025 season. [27] He was selected to represent the Cardinals at the 2025 All-Star Futures Game at Truist Park. [28] On July 8,2025,Wetherholt was promoted to the Triple-A Memphis Redbirds of the International League. [29] Over 109 games between the two teams,Wetherholt hit .306 with 17 home runs,59 RBI,28 doubles,and 23 stolen bases. [30] He was awarded both the 2025 Texas League Most Valuable Player Award and the International League Top MLB Prospect Award. [31] [32] The Cardinals also named Wetherholt their Minor League Player of the Year. [33]
Wetherholt’s grandmother is from South Korea,and he stated that he would represent Team South Korea in the 2026 World Baseball Classic. [34] Wetherholt later told reporters that he was not permitted to play for the team as he is "not Korean enough" and "...I think it would really mean a lot to her. But unfortunately,(I) won't be able to do it." [35]
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)