In 2024, the Cardinals’ offense was at the bottom of the league; despite Top-10 pitching, the lack of hitting held the team back tremendously. A lot of the blame went to hitting coach Turner Ward, a recurring issue over the past few seasons.

Finally, the Cardinals cut ties with Ward, and promoted Brant Brown to the position.

And ever since, the St. Louis Cardinals have SIGNIFICANTLY changed offensively.

Thomas Gauvain of Redbird Rants pointed out that perhaps the biggest reason for this is the hiring of Brant Brown in the offseason to be their new hitting coach.

“In every key slash line statistic, the St. Louis Cardinals are better this year on the offensive side of the game compared to the 2023 and 2024 squads. Their .262 average, .338 on-base percentage, and .329 wOBA are all tops over the last four years,” Gauvain wrote.

“Brant Brown has also helped hitters take better at bats. Their swing selection is much improved, as is evidenced by their 17.1% swinging strike rate, a figure well below league average.”

Cardinals’ hitters try to be more stubborn than the pitchers by keeping their patience and looking for good pitches to hit. On paper, it may sound simplistic, but there’s a difference between swinging at strikes and swinging at strikes that will allow them to do damage.

The ’25 Cardinals work deep into counts, wear down the opposing pitchers, and strike at the perfect chance. It’s why they’re third in MLB in BA (.263), and have 97 doubles, good enough for second in all of baseball.

Under Ward, the Cardinals offense flatlined bad in 2023 and 2024, but the Cardinals made the smart choice to find a new hitting coach. They also picked just the right person to transform the offense. Mix that in with their top pitching, and you have the perfect formula for a team ready to exceed expectations in 2025.