{"id":145988,"date":"2026-01-27T18:30:47","date_gmt":"2026-01-27T18:30:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=145988"},"modified":"2026-01-27T18:30:47","modified_gmt":"2026-01-27T18:30:47","slug":"cardinals-add-nelson-velazquez-in-move-that-signals-bigger-plans","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=145988","title":{"rendered":"Cardinals Add Nelson Velazquez in Move That Signals Bigger Plans"},"content":{"rendered":"

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IMAGE: Kansas City Royals right fielder Nelson Velazquez (17) poses for a photo during media day. \/ Jayne Kamin-Oncea \/ Imagn Images<\/div>\n
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The Cardinals added a familiar power bat to their Spring Training mix, announcing that corner outfielder and designated hitter Nelson Vel\u00e1zquez will be among their non-roster invitees. That means Vel\u00e1zquez, 27, has signed a minor league deal with St. Louis as he tries to claw his way back to the big leagues for the first time in two seasons.<\/p>\n

Vel\u00e1zquez\u2019s journey has been anything but linear. After getting outrighted off the Royals\u2019 40-man roster last spring, he struggled out of the gate in Triple-A, hitting just .202 over 33 games.<\/p>\n

Kansas City released him in May, leaving him to regroup and reset in the Mexican League. And regroup he did.<\/p>\n

Over 49 games south of the border, Vel\u00e1zquez found his swing again, putting up big numbers and earning a second chance in affiliated ball with the Pirates\u2019 organization.<\/p>\n

That hot bat didn\u2019t cool off when he returned stateside. In a short stint with Triple-A Indianapolis to close the year, Vel\u00e1zquez slashed .284\/.329\/.554 with five home runs in just 79 plate appearances. While it wasn\u2019t quite enough to earn a September call-up from Pittsburgh, it was enough to catch the attention of the Cardinals, who are clearly intrigued by his power potential.<\/p>\n

Vel\u00e1zquez has shown flashes of that power at the major league level, too. After being traded from the Cubs to the Royals in 2023, he went on a tear, launching 14 home runs in just 40 games during the second half of the season.<\/p>\n

That stretch remains his most productive in the bigs. Overall, he owns a .212\/.286\/.433 line with 31 homers across 615 plate appearances – essentially one full season\u2019s worth of action.<\/p>\n

The power is real, but the contact and on-base skills have lagged behind.<\/p>\n

Still, the timing of this move makes sense for St. Louis.<\/p>\n

The Cardinals are in the midst of a roster transition, and while they\u2019re not calling it a full rebuild, there\u2019s clearly an openness to reshuffling roles – especially in the outfield. The recent trade of Willson Contreras is expected to shift Alec Burleson into more of a first base role, which could free up corner outfield reps.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s also some uncertainty around Lars Nootbaar, who\u2019s recovering from offseason heel surgeries. The team may want to ease him in before fully committing to his return.<\/p>\n

Then there\u2019s Jordan Walker, the former top prospect who\u2019s set for another run in right field. This season is shaping up as a pivotal one for Walker, and the Cardinals will want to give him every opportunity to prove he can be a long-term fixture. At designated hitter, Iv\u00e1n Herrera is expected to see the bulk of the action when he\u2019s not behind the plate, limiting opportunities there.<\/p>\n

So where does Vel\u00e1zquez fit? Realistically, he\u2019s not being brought in to leapfrog younger players like Walker or fellow right-handed slugger Joshua Baez in the pecking order.<\/p>\n

But he does bring something unique to the table: he\u2019s the only non-roster outfielder in camp with prior MLB experience. That gives him a potential edge if injuries pop up or if the Cardinals decide they need a power bat off the bench.<\/p>\n

Most likely, Vel\u00e1zquez will open the season at Triple-A Memphis, where he\u2019ll try to keep the momentum going and stay ready for a call-up. For a player who\u2019s already battled through setbacks and detours, this invite is another shot – and if his bat stays hot, he might just force his way back into the big-league picture.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

IMAGE: Kansas City Royals right fielder Nelson Velazquez (17) poses for a photo during media day. \/ Jayne Kamin-Oncea \/ Imagn Images   The Cardinals added a… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":145992,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-145988","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mlb"],"yoast_head":"\nCardinals Add Nelson Velazquez in Move That Signals Bigger Plans - NEWS USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=145988\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Cardinals Add Nelson Velazquez in Move That Signals Bigger Plans - 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