WVU infielder Wetherholt chosen 7th by Cardinals

Looking the part of a Texan for the biggest weekend of his life, Mars and West Virginia product JJ (Jonathan David) Wetherholt was wearing a cowboy hat and snakeskin boots Sunday night when he was selected seventh overall by the St. Louis Cardinals in the MLB Draft in Fort Worth, Texas.

“I’m trying to embrace the Texas that’s not in me, but it’s coming out,” he said before the draft on the ESPN telecast.

But he hasn’t forgotten his hometown roots.

“I’m from Mars, Pennsylvania. Believe it or not, it’s a real place,” he said.

More to the point, Wetherholt, 21, said the Cardinals are getting a player who is eager to learn and improve.

“They’re getting a baller, man,” he said on the ESPN telecast. “I can do it all. I can do a little bit of everything.

“I definitely don’t have the game completely figured out. I’m a learner. I’m excited to learn. I’m super excited to see what the Cardinals can do to make me a better player.”

ESPN baseball draft analyst Kiley McDaniel agrees.

“He’s literally above average at every single thing on the baseball field. That’s the sales pitch here,” he said. “He’s almost a sure bigleaguer.”

His left-handed swing was labeled unique by ESPN’s Chris Burke.

“He may not be the most scary hitter in the draft, but for my money, it’s the prettiest swing,” Burke said. “This dude’s bat-to-ball move is as pretty as there is in this draft.”

Another member of the network’s draft panel believes Wetherholt’s worth goes beyond the batter’s box.

“I think it’s really impressive,” Eduardo Perez said, “that he played the first two years (at West Virginia) at second base, moved over to shortstop and showed the athleticism.”

Wetherholt, who was proud to show an ESPN audience a West Virginia patch on the inside of his suit jacket, is the second Mars graduate drafted in the first round in the past four years, joining pitcher Will Bednar (2021). He is the seventh WPIAL player chosen in the first round in the past 10 drafts.

He committed to West Virginia — the only school to offer him a scholarship — as a high school sophomore.

“Best decision I made in my life,” he said.

Wetherholt (5-foot-10, 190 pounds) spent three years playing infield for West Virginia, leading the nation in batting average as a sophomore in 2023 (.449). He suffered a hamstring strain that cost him 24 games this season and dropped his batting average to .331, his home runs from 16 to eight, RBIs from 60 to 30 and stolen bases from 36 to six.

Another trait that surely attracted the Cardinals: He struck out only 82 times in three seasons.

“This year was tough,” he said. “It was a roller coaster, for sure. It was brutal, tough to go through. I had to find a way to push through it and be there for my guys.”

Said Burke: “The concern about the hamstring is there because it happened last summer and again this year. But when he is right, he can run as well as anybody in this draft, and it shows up in games. I think the Cardinals are banking on getting the hitter from last year with the potential to play shortstop from this year.”

Wetherholt thinks a lot about his game, and he said he changed the hand position at the plate before this season.

“I had a lot of movement that I thought would affect me a little pre-pitch,” he said. “Just simplify it a little bit to get into a position where I thought I could launch my barrel a little bit better. My swing felt really good.”

Growing up in Mars, he modeled his game after Jose Altuve, a 5-6 former American League MVP.

He added, “I could dream to try to be a guy like (All-Star shortstop Gunnar Henderson). He’s exciting to watch.”