Cardinals Rookie Has Chance To Make Team History After Stellar Start

St. Louis fans certainly should be happy about the young shortstop's performance

May 29, 2024; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; St. Louis Cardinals shortstop Masyn Winn (0) prepares for the pitch in the sixth inning against the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park. Mandatory Credit: Katie Stratman-USA TODAY Sports / Katie Stratman-USA TODAY Sports

The St. Louis Cardinals certainly should be loving what they are seeing right now from rookie shortstop Masyn Winn.

He earned the club's starting shortstop spot in Spring Training and has been nothing short of spectacular. The 22-year-old unsurprisingly started somewhat slow on the offensive end but has been fantastic defensively all season to this point.

His bat clearly has picked up as well as he's currently riding a 16-game hitting streak. Overall, he is slashing .308/.358/.440 to go along with two home runs, 18 RBIs, 11 doubles, and seven stolen bases in 49 games played.

He has been so impressive that he has racked up 2.3 wins above replacement so far this season. Winn also has a chance to become just the sixth Cardinals shortstop to record six or more wins above replacement in a single season, according to Belleville News Democrat's Jeff Jones.

"There have only been eight seasons in Cardinals history where a full-time shortstop (at least 75% of games) recorded more than 6 bWAR," Jones said. "Ozzie Smith has four of the eight, most recent in 1989. One each for (Dick Groat), (Solly Hemus), (Rogers Hornsby), and Bobby Wallace. Masyn Winn is pacing for 6.9."

Winn is just 22 years old and clearly has shown already this season that he is going to play a significant role with St. Louis for a long time. He has been fantastic this season and even has a chance to join the list of Cardinals greats.

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