Victor Scott II is already one of the most electric athletes in baseball – that much isn’t up for debate. His speed and defense are elite, bordering on generational.

He ranked in the 99th percentile in Outs Above Average with 17 and clocked a blistering 30.2 MPH sprint speed, good for the 100th percentile. That’s not just fast – that’s game-changing.

Whether he’s tracking down deep fly balls in center or wreaking havoc on the basepaths, Scott’s athleticism jumps off the screen.

But for all the highlight-reel defense and stolen bases, 2025 exposed a clear gap in his game: the bat.

Scott’s offensive numbers last season were tough. He posted a .216/.305/.296 slash line across 138 games, with just five home runs and an .080 ISO – the fifth-lowest among hitters with at least 450 plate appearances.

That kind of production puts a ceiling on his overall impact, especially for a player with his tools. Even with 34 stolen bases, the reality is he could’ve swiped a lot more if he’d simply been on base more often.

That’s where the offseason comes in – and where Victor Scott II is putting in the kind of work that speaks volumes about his mindset and maturity.

According to Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol, Scott didn’t just take the offseason as a chance to rest – he used it to reset. “Not having the success he wanted last year is a big part of this,” Marmol said.

“But the way he processes that lack of success is key. He’s the kind of guy who takes notes after every game, reviews his at-bats, even watches plays he wasn’t involved in to learn from others.”

That kind of self-awareness and dedication isn’t common in players his age. Scott turns 25 this year, but he’s already showing the kind of veteran approach that bodes well for his development.

After taking about a month off from baseball-specific work, Scott dove headfirst into revamping his offensive game. The goal? To come back in 2026 as a different player – a more complete one.

“I told the Cardinals I wanted to come back a totally different player,” Scott said. “I knew I had two calling cards – defense and speed – but I’m not complete without my offense.”

To get there, he went back to where it all started: West Virginia University. The school recently opened a cutting-edge Baseball Biomechanics and Performance Center, and Scott saw it as the perfect place to break down his swing and rebuild it from the ground up. The facility is loaded with modern training tech – Trackman, force plates, motion capture systems – and Scott used it all to get a clearer picture of what wasn’t working.

“We found out some of my movements were kind of inefficient and didn’t really help me with being adjustable,” he said. That’s a key word: adjustable.

The best hitters in the game aren’t just powerful or quick – they’re adaptable. They can make changes mid-at-bat, mid-season, mid-career.

Scott wants to be that kind of hitter.

From there, he worked with the Cardinals and West Virginia’s biomechanist to build a plan. And they didn’t rush it.

“We started crawling before we walked,” Scott explained. “We didn’t just jump straight into hitting off the machine.

We did a lot of movement prep – getting my hips to rotate the right way, creating better shin angles, firming up my front ankle – just trying to use energy more efficiently.”

That’s the kind of granular, biomechanics-driven work that can unlock real gains at the plate. It’s not about swinging harder – it’s about swinging smarter.

Make no mistake: Scott’s defense and baserunning are already elite. He’s a difference-maker in center field and a nightmare for pitchers once he’s on base.

But if he can turn himself into even a league-average hitter? That’s when things get scary – for opposing teams.

The Cardinals believe in his upside. Marmol believes in his process. And Scott clearly believes in the work.

Now it’s about results. If the offseason grind pays off, Victor Scott II could go from a defensive specialist with world-class wheels to one of the most complete center fielders in the league.

The tools are there. The mindset is there. 2026 might just be the year it all comes together.