ST. LOUIS – After months of work with record-breaking base stealer Vince Coleman, outfield prospect Victor Scott II is hopeful to recreate a speed dynamic the St. Louis Cardinals haven’t had individually in decades.

Victor Scott led all MLB prospects with 94 stolen bases last year between the Cardinals’ Single-A affiliate Peoria Chiefs and Double-A Springfield Cardinals. It’s the closest anyone in the Cardinals organization, big leagues or minors, has come to Coleman’s rookie record of 110 stolen bases in quite some time.

Scott first met Coleman during last year’s MLB All-Star Futures Game. He says their talks revolved around reading pitcher tendencies to maximize the potential for extra bases.

“As soon as I met him at the Futures Game, that was the first thing he told me,” said Scott. “He’s definitely dropped some pretty good coins along the way.”

Scott says this, along with awareness of pitch speeds, has helped him gain an edge in the speed department last year.

Key comments from John Mozeliak at Cardinals’ Winter Warm-Up

“Pitchers are creatures of habit. They may twitch a certain way to get into an internal hip rotation. They may breathe a certain way. They may look a certain way. Noticing those things to get that first jump is always critical.”

Scott says his parents, plus his studies in kinesiology at the University of West Virginia, have helped him envision a speedy path to Major League Baseball.

“My parents are both sprinters,” said Scott. “They passed it down to me. It does feel pretty good to know I can impact this way and know I can provide some service besides the bat and the defensive ability.”

Masyn Winn, who swiped 17 stolen bases last year at Memphis before his big-league promotion, says Scott’s speed can be a major difference-maker.

“He’s a very interesting cat,” said Winn. “He’s different for sure, but it’s super exciting watching that dude run, watching that dude make plays. For me, watching the highlights is one of the best parts. Seeing him rob a home run, jumping 13 feet in the air, I’d like to see that for sure in person. I can’t wait to play with that guy.”

Scott says he’s intensified his offseason workouts with a Woodway treadmill, helping him become familiar with his top speeds on different surfaces.

“With that principle, you learn the principle of grabbing the ground when you run, which is insane when you get off a treadmill and go to a flat surface,” said Scott. “Working on those things and refining them has been the focus there. Ninety-four stolen bases in a season is good, but being able to do that at the big league level is the end goal.”

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Cardinals (Seasonal)

Running isn’t the only “speed” element Scott aims to improve heading into the 2024 season.

“The Cardinals told me they wanted me to build bat speeds, but kind of learn the right ways of how to do it. Not neccessarily going out and swinging as hard as I could, just learning how my body operates and how to create that space to generate that bat speed.”

Scott also had 166 hits last season, best among all minor leaguers aside from fellow Cardinals prospect Thomas Saggese. Nearly three out of his four hits were singles. Scott feels some adjustments on offense and running can change that.

“When you talk about that gap-to-gap power and those accidental homers, instead of the singles approach, you add the elements of doubles, and more triples. It adds a little more of an exciting piece of the game.”

MLB Pipeline ranks Scott as the Cardinals’ fourth-best prospect with an expected MLB arrival time of 2025. He feels he’s getting closer to reaching the top level.

“It feels incredible,” said Scott. “Surreal to know this is my first full year, and I’ve kind of made those waves and strides to make myself the player I am now. To know I kind of have my foot in the door. It’s an awesome feeling, honestly.”

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