President of baseball operations John Mozeliak expects Thomas to be an impact player next year.
Whether left fielder Marcell Ozuna returns to the Cardinals for the 2020 season remains to be seen. With or without him, a significant competition for outfield playing time looms in spring training, where rapidly rising prospect Dylan Carlson will join the group that includes Thomas, Dexter Fowler, Harrison Bader, Jose Martinez, Randy Arozarena, Justin Williams and Adolis Garcia.
In manager Mike Shildt’s first season-and-a-half, his teams have played at a .571 clip (132-99). Granted the sample size is smaller, but that compares favorably to Mike Matheny’s .