Cardinals activate Jordan Walker, option Thomas Saggese to Class AAA: Cardinals Extra
PHOENIX — Following a stay on the injured list that stretched back to the end of June and included a rehab stint that allowed him to work on adjustments at the plate, right fielder Jordan Walker was activated and added to the Cardinals’ active roster Friday ahead of their second-half season opener against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
“I’m ready to go. ... It feels good to be back after the All-Star break, and I’m ready to get going again,” Walker said Friday from the visiting clubhouse at Chase Field.
Walker, 23, returns from his second IL stint of this season with a .210 batting average, a .562 OPS in 55 games. The young outfielder landed on the 10-day IL on June 25 with appendicitis, which required an overnight hospital stay. Walker returned home the next morning after receiving a nonsurgical treatment that helped him avoid a more severe issue. In the days after his hospital stay, Walker increased physical activity before being sent on a rehab assignment that began with Class AAA Memphis and led him to Class AA Springfield (Missouri) at the start of July.
Cardinals outfielder Jordan Walker runs down a fly ball hit by the Astros’ Jose Altuve in the third inning Monday, April 14, 2025, at Busch Stadium.
Post-Dispatch photo
While working with coaches in Springfield and receiving time in right field and at-bats as a designated hitter, Walker reportedly felt well as he jumped back into game action. The Cardinals wanted to give him time to find comfort with swing changes as he worked with minor league coaching, including Russ Steinhorn, the organization’s minor league hitting coordinator, and Springfield hitting coach Casey Chenoweth.
Adjustments to his body position were a main focus.
“Things that will help me get into a good position to hit,” Walker said. “Stuff like that, and more of making sure my weight is going towards the ball, not away from it, was a big key. ... I like to keep it simple during the season. I don’t like to think about too much stuff. If we had to focus on one area, I think that the area we focused on most was making sure my body and my weight and my power are going towards the ball, not away from it, so I can drive the ball to all parts of the field.”
Across 10 rehab games with Springfield, Walker had six hits in 38 at-bats. He homered twice and hit three doubles. Four of the six hits and two of the homers he clubbed came in the final four games he played before the All-Star break arrived.
“Just consistency,” Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said regarding what the Cardinals hope to see from Walker’s swing adjustments. “I think when you look at Jordan, there are a lot of inconsistencies about how his back comes through, and I think this helps clean up some of the wasted movement and it allows him to just launch from a more consistent position. That’s our hope.”
The IL stay for appendicitis was Walker’s second IL stint this season. The 23-year-old missed around two weeks at the start of June because of inflammation in his left wrist.
As one of the young Cardinals who was set to receive ample playing time this season, Walker, the club’s opening day starting right fielder, is slashing .210/.267/.295 with three homers and four doubles. He has 63 strikeouts in 191 plate appearances. Considering Alec Burleson’s consistency at the plate, which has landed him a starting role in right field, Walker’s playing time upon his return may be uncertain.
On Friday, Walker was slotted into the Cardinals’ lineup in the No. 7 spot and in at right field after Nolan Gorman, who was scheduled to start at second base and bat fifth, was scratched because of back discomfort.
The next steps for Saggese
To clear a spot for Walker’s return, infielder Thomas Saggese was optioned to Class AAA Memphis. Saggese, 23, returns to the minors after he batted .133 with a .308 OPS in 14 games following his call-up from Class AAA on June 20.
With top prospect JJ Wetherholt promoted to Memphis, the Cardinals plan to keep both Saggese and Wetherholt rotating across the infield to give them reps at second base, shortstop and third base. Continuing the development at the plate to limit chasing pitching out of the strike zone will be a key for Saggese upon his return to the minors.
“He (Saggese) does a nice job of using the whole field and taking a tough at-bat, but the league will start throwing him less strikes and see what he does with it, so he has to do a better job of controlling the strike zone,” Marmol said.
Extra bases
The Cardinals hope Lars Nootbaar (left costochondral sprain) can begin a swing progression as early as Monday. Nootbaar, who was placed on the 10-day injured list on July 13, remained in ӣƵ while the Cardinals began their two-city road trip coming out of the All-Star break.
Former Cardinals starter Kyle Gibson announced his retirement from Major League Baseball on Thursday during an appearance on the “Serving It Up” podcast. Gibson, a former Mizzou standout, pitched for the Cardinals in 2024. The longtime starter spent the bulk of his big-league career with the Minnesota Twins, who selected him in the first round of the 2009 draft. Gibson pitched for the Orioles in 2025. The 37-year-old’s 13-year career also included time with the Rangers, with whom he was named an All-Star in 2021, and the Phillies.
Worthy: The feel-good story of Ryan O'Hearn just one of the MLB storylines worth tracking
Baltimore Orioles slugger start as designated hitter for the American League in the Major League Baseball All-Star Game this week likely didn’t make much of a blip on a lot of radars outside of the Beltway, but it does represent one of those unique baseball journeys that combines elements of fortitude and vindication.
As MLB enters the sweltering days of the summer and the playoff chases really start to sizzle, the left-handed-hitting O’Hearn, 31, looks like one of those trade candidates with the potential to significantly bolster a contending team or fill a need for a team still fighting for its postseason hopes.
O’Hearn went into the break batting .286 with a .382 on-base percentage, a .458 slugging percentage and 11 home runs in 273 at-bats. He also carried an OPS+ of 139 this season while bouncing between both corner outfield positions as well as first base.
Nobody will confuse him with acquiring Shohei Ohtani at the trade deadline, but O’Hearn is a solid left-handed hitter with pop.
In a larger sense, O’Hearn also serves as an example that the clichéd phrase of a player in need of “a change of scenery” actually holds true now and then.
“I never thought it was going to happen,” O’Hearn told Baltimore-based reporters when he got selected as an All-Star starter. “I thought that was probably just a pipe dream and something that wasn’t in the cards for me, and I was completely OK with it. I think that’s why I’m shocked right now.
“I spent a lot of time just trying to keep my head above the water in the big leagues and just stick around as long as I possibly could. To be able to say I’m a major league all-star — I’m blown away.”
A former draft pick of the Kansas City Royals (2014, eighth round), O’Hearn made an immediate and historic splash when he reached the majors in 2018. He hit 12 home runs and 24 extra-base hits in his 44 games that season, the most by any Royal.
However, he struggled to find the consistency to build on that initial success. In his next 231 big league games, he has slashed .205/.280/.358.
By 2022, he’d taken a back seat to younger prospects and former first-round draft pick Nick Pratto.
While O’Hearn remained on the big league roster for the entire 2022 season, his playing time became minimal and infrequent — 145 total plate appearances. O’Hearn earned the respect of Royals staff and teammates for the way he handled his situation. He worked diligently toward individual improvement, and he remained a good teammate and a positive clubhouse presence.
After the 2022 season, the Royals traded him to the Orioles for cash. The Orioles then designated him for assignment that same winter to make room on the roster. O’Hearn came to camp that year as a non-roster invite.
Since the start of the regular season in 2023, O’Hearn has slashed .278/.343/.452.
O’Hearn may influence a playoff race this summer. If not, he’s still proof that a new environment can turn around a career and reignite an earlier spark.
Other things to watch down the stretch include:
The Seattle Mariners’ Cal Raleigh celebrates after winning the MLB All-Star Home Run Derby on Monday in Atlanta.
Mike Stewart, Associated Press
Raleigh rally rolls on
Not enough light can shine on Seattle Mariners catcher tremendous season. That’s not just because of his gaudy 38 home run total or his 82 RBIs — both lead the majors and outpace New York Yankees superstar Aaron Judge.
It’s that Raleigh has had MVP-caliber offensive production while playing the most taxing position on the field. Oh, and it’s not as if he’s being hidden behind the plate by default. Last season, he brought home the AL Gold Glove Award as a catcher as well as the AL Platinum Glove Award as the league’s best all-around defender.
This season, he’s caught more than 630 innings, and he’s among the top tier of catchers in throwing out base stealers as well as framing pitches.
Judge leads the majors in wins above replacement (WAR), which likely makes him the lead dog in the MVP race, but the grind of catching doesn’t get quantified accurately enough for my liking.
The Tigers’ Spencer Torkelson reacts after hitting a three-run home run off Royals starting pitcher Seth Lugo during last Saturday’s game in Detroit.
Jose Juarez, Associated Press
Tiger tales
The best record at the MLB All-Star break belonged to the Detroit Tigers. The same Tigers who entered the season projected (via PECOTA) for 79 wins, have already won 59 games.
The Tigers logged an MLB-best six All-Star selections, including players who were chosen and did not participate as well as players named as replacements, led by defending AL Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal.
The team from the Motor City already has an 11 1/2-game lead in the AL Central.
have made a big impact. Riley Greene, in his fourth big league season at age 24, is batting .284 and already has matched his home run total from last season (24). Meanwhile, former No. 1 overall draft pick (2020) Spencer Torkelson has an .826 OPS and 21 home runs.
Former Cardinals pitcher Jack Flaherty has a strikeout rate (11.1 per nine innings) higher than his best seasons with the Cardinals, though he’s also posted a 4.65 ERA and 5-9 record.
Deep pockets and deep runs
With , it will be interesting to watch how the big-market, high-payroll clubs finish down the stretch.
In some corners, teams like the Los Angeles Dodgers, New York Yankees, New York Mets, Philadelphia Phillies, San Diego Padres, San Francisco Giants and Toronto Blue Jays garner praise for pushing payroll to its upper limits.
Some might call it trying to build the best team possible for their fan base.
However, this past offseason featured a distinct outcry over the spending habits of teams like the Dodgers, Yankees and Mets and their resulting ability to stockpile talent and add high-profile free agents in recent years such as Shohei Ohtani, Blake Snell, Juan Soto, Max Fried and Gerrit Cole.
How the high-spending teams perform down the stretch (including the postseason) and the perception of their seasons may be very telling as far as how the upcoming war between the players and ownership will be framed.
Post-Dispatch sports columnists Lynn Worthy and Jeff Gordon discuss what the cardinals did during the summer draft and the challenges that await the team after the All-Star break.
Cardinals at the break: How trade deadline dilemma dictates if 'runway' takes off or refuels
Cardinals outfielder Jordan Walker (18) celebrates his a two-run home run off Phillies pitcher Carlos Hernandez with outfielder Mike Siani in the eighth inning of a game Sunday, April 13, 2025, at Busch Stadium.
Laurie Skrivan, Post-Dispatch
Anyone who has spent any recent time in Row 25’s middle seat of a jetliner idling on the tarmac, trying to get a clear view of the window, has a feeling for the spot the Cardinals find themselves in at the All-Star break of their rebrand summer.
Every runway is only so long.
Eventually, you do have to take off.
Or taxi around ‘til turning back to refuel.
Since the 2024 season ended with a pivot toward development and upcoming years, the Cardinals have launched a variety of buzzwords: “reset” (abandoned), “transition” (adopted) and “runway” (widely accepted). The intended purpose of the season was to give homegrown players plenty of playing time, or “runway,” to determine where they fit in the Cardinals’ next era. Instead of the historically accurate metrics of wins, pennant and World Series appearances, one club official said this season would be a “failure” if they came out of it without a complete evaluation of their young players.
A funny thing happened on the way to the future.
The Cardinals started to contend.
“We’ve given ourselves a shot while still doing (the developing), right?” manager Oliver Marmol said. “I think we’ve threaded that as much as we can. I don’t think we’ll veer from it. The further we get into the season, it’s not just runway for the sake of runway.”
The Cardinals open the back stretch of the regular season with right-hander Andre Pallante starting Friday night in Arizona and No. 1 starter Sonny Gray set to go Saturday. At 51-46, the Cardinals spent the break at third place in the National League Central, 6 1/2 games out of the division lead but only 1 1/2 games out of an NL wild-card berth. They have a favorable schedule in the coming weeks that begins with their first games of the year west of Kansas City and nine of the next 13 against losing teams.
That 13 also coincides with how many games the Cardinals have before the July 31 trade deadline — and John Mozeliak, in his final trade deadline as president of baseball operations, is watching them for a direction. These 13 games could be the deadline weathervane, pointing the Cardinals toward buyer, seller or vacillating to a familiar house blend of both.
Will it be a gust of wins?
Or a drop in pressure?
“It could be so different with four or five guys who are out of here in a couple of weeks,” said closer Ryan Helsley, who could be one of those four or five guys due to his expiring contract. Fellow relievers Phil Maton and Steven Matz will also generate interest. Helsley has expressed a preference to stay and remain long term with the Cardinals.
“That depends on how we play and what the rest of the division is doing,” Helsley continued. “I feel like that’s the case every year. But this year what’s different — teams thought we were going to be a lot worse than we are. Teams show up here and it’s a dogfight against us from pitch No. 1.”
“I think it’s a group that is not afraid of anything,” said Brendan Donovan, the Cardinals’ lone All-Star, late Tuesday night after going 2 for 3 in the NL’s victory in Atlanta. “It’s people learning how to go about their business in the big leagues, kind of learning who they are. And I think that’s what makes us scary. ... Our expectations were completely different than the ones set on us.”
From above at cruising altitude, the Cardinals are decidedly slightly above average.
Their offense produces runs 3% better than league average with a .252 batting average that ranks 11th and a .393 slugging percentage that ranks 18th out of 30. Their pitching staff ERA ranks 20th in the majors at 4.13. It’s buoyed by the bullpen’s 3.81 ERA, which ranks 13th, and burdened a tad by a below-average rotation with a 4.34 ERA
The Cardinals are greater than the sum of their parts considering some of those parts are producing below their career expectations.
They rely on tight defense, solid late-inning relief, clever bullpen use, starter health and some fortunate timing. They rank fourth in the majors in comeback wins (24) and have the fourth-fewest blown-lead losses (18).
“You never see them beat themselves,” said Reds All-Star lefty Andrew Abbott.
The Cardinals advertised to the division that they weren’t going to make any significant offseason additions, and they did not.
“And it’s working,” Cubs outfielder Pete Crow-Armstrong said.
Cardinals shortstop Masyn Winn celebrates after hitting an RBI double, driving in Lars Nootbaar, during a game against the Pirates on Wednesday, May 7, 2025, at Busch Stadium.
Allie Schallert, Post-Dispatch
Although, the Cardinals are defying trends in the game to still succeed. They are one of two winning teams who rank in the bottom 10 for strikeout rate. (They are 29th at 7.37 per nine innings, ahead of only lowly Colorado.) For comparison, eight of the top nine teams in strikeout rate have winning records. The Cardinals are one of four winning teams with fewer than 100 home runs so far this season, and they have the lowest isolated power (slugging minus batting average) of any winning team, at .129.
They are the only winning team in the bottom third for strikeout rate and home runs hit.
The Cardinals play the probabilities. They are a team that relies on balls put in play against them finding fielders and balls put in play by them finding gaps. Toss in the volatility of youth and prolonged offensive slumps that come with adjusting and adapting at the majors and that explains their nine-game winning streak and the recent rash of shutouts.
Marmol was recently asked by the Post-Dispatch if he sees those roller-coaster results smoothing out as a sign of improvement from the young players.
“I’d love to say yes, but the answer is not entirely,” Marmol said. “I think when you look at a veteran player, what they’ve learned to do is shorten the amount of time that they stink. They’re able to take a three-week period and turn it into 10 days. It’s shorter. And then you put a lot of veterans together and they do that in the win-loss column, too. It’s just how they play the game. It’s just shorter downturns or ruts in a season. When you’re young and you’re a player, those are longer. ... You put a lot of (developing players) together you’re actually going to have these longer ups and downs. That’s just part of it.
“As a staff, we have to constantly remind ourselves of that,” he continued. “Because you can’t get frustrated. That is part of this process.”
Marmol was asked what role wins play in that “process.”
“We can’t be fooled, just because we won we’re good or because we lost we weren’t,” he explained. “Sometimes we only think about the second one: We lost, but we weren’t good. Sometimes you win a game and you played like (crud). You missed a lot of opportunities and you just got lucky and you better learn from those as much as some of the losses.”
That is the point where the Cardinals’ season they planned and the opportunity they have in the standings connect: How important is winning to developing?
As the trade deadline nears, here are three Cardinals who personify the answer to that question, two of whom could see their place in the present and future of the club shaped in the coming weeks:
1. Jordan Walker, OF
Limited to 55 games by injury stints to go with his .210 average and .562 on-base plus slugging percentage (OPS), Walker’s time on a rehab assignment is running out with a decision imminent, coming possibly as soon as Friday. The Cardinals optioned Thomas Saggese on Thursday to clear room.
Walker went on the injured list this past month due to appendicitis.
The Cardinals assigned him to Class AA Springfield (Missouri) for his rehab so that he could work with coaches there on a swing adjustment. When he’s set to return to the majors, his playing time is uncertain, especially as Alec Burleson has hit his way into a starting job.
Walker was a prominent part of the Cardinals’ “runway” plan — to see if he would be the talent to take off. Now, at the deadline, teams expect to ask if he’s in play for trade talks or if the Cardinals will deal from overlaps at other positions.
2. Michael McGreevy, RHP
Cardinals officials agree that McGreevy is ready for the majors, and they’ve used his roster status to move the right-hander between Class AAA Memphis and the majors as a de facto sixth starter. The most obvious way to clear a spot in the rotation for McGreevy is to trade one of the current members, such as a pending free agent Erick Fedde.
Fedde has struggled in the past month, diminishing the return the Cardinals could get. But a move would give McGreevy the ever-popular “runway” to provide results now as he preps to be in next season’s rotation.
3. Mozeliak
In the closing months of his 18th season atop baseball operations, Mozeliak will be in a familiar place at the trade deadline: the spotlight. But he knows it will be for the last time with this team. He can attempt to play it like golf — down the middle — or choose a side. What he and the Cardinals elect to do will shape how the club is viewed at the end of his tenure and how it will start Chaim Bloom’s turn.
Mozeliak described the deadline decisions as “collaborative” with the incoming front office. And he recently wished for “tough decisions” at the deadline because it would mean balancing a winning team now and the goal of setting up the team for contending years yet to come. He cautioned against “blowing up a club” because it can take “years to recover.”
“Is there something the franchise can benefit from should we do (it)?” he said.
One answer that comes up around the organization: the benefit of winning.
After an offseason downplaying expectations for the club and trying to trade some veterans who refused to waive their no-trade clauses and preferred to stay, the Cardinals are one win better than last season at the same point. A decision to sell at the deadline could lead to a precipitous drop in the standings and dramatic change in the clubhouse — younger, yes, but without the airflow of winning to elevate the climate.
They risk the runway becoming a ground stop.
“That is why our staff is completely locked in making sure we keep (winning) that way because it’s better for the players,” Marmol said. “It is. It’s ideal. It’s what you’re hoping for. It’s better for the player to play meaningful baseball whether there is pressure from an evaluation standpoint or from an experience standpoint. When you can get them together, that is high-level development.”
Andre Pallante starts Cardinals' 2nd-half opener vs. disappointing D-backs: First Pitch
History is on Cardinals starter Andre Pallante's side despite the challenging conditions Friday.
Pallante and the Cardinals come out of the All-Star break Friday night for an 8:40 p.m. (ӣƵ time) first pitch against the Diamondbacks in Phoenix.
Coming off one of his worst starts of the year — seven earned runs in six innings vs. Washington — Pallante hopes to follow the pattern from earlier rough starts.
In his next start after permitting four or more earned runs, Pallante has usually rebounded with a much better outing.
The right-hander Pallante (5-5, 4.49 ERA) has been tinkering with his pitch mix in recent games, throwing fewer fastballs and more sliders. The slider is a pitch against which Arizona struggles with a .214 team batting average, while the D'backs rank toward the top of the league in damage against four-seamers.
Pallante's strength as a groundball getter will clash with Arizona's propensity to put the ball in the air.
Arizona pulls fly balls at a rate that puts the Diamondbacks near the top of the league, and when the Diamondbacks do so, they hit for a 2.104 on-base plus slugging percentage, best in baseball.
In his three starts vs. teams that pull fly balls at similar rates as the Diamondbacks, Pallante limited damage in two of them while struggling mightily in the other.
Chase Field ranks as baseball's fourth-most hitter friendly park, according to .
Arizona will start right-hander Brandon Pfaadt (9-6, 5.16 ERA), a significant part of the team's rotation woes. He and former Cardinals farmhand Zac Gallen each have ERAs north of five while surgery. Arizona has the National League's fourth-worst starting staff by ERA (4.47).
Coming off an 89-win season last year, the Diamondbacks were expected to be a , but those have Arizona with a sub.-500 record and mulling a trade deadline selloff. The Diamondbacks' strong offense has kept the team near the .500 mark.
Arizona is 47-50, fourth in the National League West.
The Cardinals are 51-46, third in the National League Central and 1 1/2 games out of a wild-card spot. ӣƵ went 4-8 in its last 12 heading into the break, thanks mainly to cracks in the starting rotation. ӣƵ starters have a 6.67 ERA since June 30.
Jordan Walker activated, Thomas Saggese sent down
Before the game, the Cardinals activated outfielder Jordan Walker from the 10-day injured list and sent infielder Thomas Saggese back down to Triple-A.
Walker, who was placed on the injured list in late June with appendicitis, hit .146 (7-for-46) in 12 rehab games, most at Double-A Springfield, and was nearing the maximum length for a rehab stint.
He was not in the initial starting lineup Friday but was later added after Nolan Gorman was scratched due to back tightness.
Game also airs on KMOV (Channel 4) and Matrix (Channel 32)
Friday's game, in addition to the usual airing on FanDuel Sports Midwest, also is simulcast on local broadcast television on KMOV (Channel 4) and Matrix Midwest (Channel 32). throughout the Cardinals footprint in six nearby states will also carry the game.
TV/radio: FanDuel Sports Network Midwest (), KMOV (Channel 4), Matrix Midwest (Channel 32) as well as ; KMOX (1120 AM and 104.1 FM), other stations in the as well as .
Note: This lineup has been updated to reflect Nolan Gorman being scratched due to back tightness and Jordan Walker being inserted.
1. Brendan Donovan, 2B
2. Iván Herrera, DH
3. Alec Burleson, LF
4. Willson Contreras, 1B
5. Nolan Arenado, 3B
6. Masyn Winn, SS
7. Jordan Walker, RF
8. Pedro Pagés, C
9. Victor Scott II, CF
P: Andre Pallante, RHP
DIAMONDBACKS
1. Corbin Carroll, RF
2. Geraldo Perdomo, SS
3. Lourdes Gurriel Jr., LF
4. Josh Naylor, 1B
5. Eugenio Suárez, 3B
6. Adrian Del Castillo, DH
7. Blaze Alexander, 2B
8. Alek Thomas, CF
9. Jose Herrera, C
P: Brandon Pfaadt, RHP
Injury report
Lars Nootbaar, OF (left costochondral sprain): Nootbaar attempted to play through discomfort in his left side in the days leading up to the All-Star break but was forced to exit games early on July 10 and July 12 when the issue flared up before being placed on the 10-day IL on July 13. Since he's dealt with the issue, Nootbaar has reaggravated the injury on check swings. He remained in ӣƵ when the Cardinals began their first road trip of the second half in Arizona. The goal is for Nootbaar to begin a swing progression by Monday back in ӣƵ. Updated July 18
Nolan Gorman, 2B/3B (back tightness): Gorman was scratched from the Cardinals’ starting lineup for their Friday opener in Arizona because of tightness in his back. Before the first half of the season wrapped, Gorman unavailable from the Cardinals’ bench on July 13 after his “lower back locked up on him,” Marmol said. Updated July 18
Zack Thompson, LHP (shoulder, lat strain): Lefty starter has begun a throwing program designed to strengthen his arm after a long stretch without much activity. The shoulder has responded well and Thompson has felt progress with this program, which had to be restarted because his recovery stalled in May. There is no timetable for his return to the mound. Updated June 19
Buy? Sell? Both! Neither?! Forecasting the Cardinals' trade winds as deadline nears
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With Major League Baseball's July 31 trade deadline rapidly approaching, the Cardinals are still considering what direction they'll head. The front office has wished for "tough decisions" at the deadline and "excitement," while acknowledging that the way they head may not be clear 72 hours ahead of the deadline, if at all. History suggests they'll explore the nebulous middle -- neither seller nor buyer, adding to patch holes this year and beyond without giving up too much from the future for now. The wild card this season is it's John Mozeliak's last trade deadline as president of baseball operations, and is there one last trick he'd like to pull before yielding his office and desk to Chaim Bloom?
Sports columnist Jeff Gordon joins baseball writer Derrick Goold to discuss the deadline, the All-Star Game's bananas finish, and deliver his midterm grades on every corner of the Cardinals' roster.
Did he grade on a curve? Or did he stick to the standards of past years?
In its 13th season as one of the leading podcasts covering the Cardinals and discussing baseball, the Best Podcast in Baseball is brought to listeners weekly by Closets by Design of ӣƵ. BPIB is a production of the ӣƵ, , and Derrick Goold.
Post-Dispatch baseball writer Derrick Goold joined columnist Jeff Gordon to discuss which way John Mozeliak might play the deadline.
The power-armed lefty enters the newly restructured player development system after signing a $7.25 million deal that also gives the Cardinals flexibility.
For the first time the All-Star Game was decided by a "swing off," Judge romps, but not before Donovan's two-hit All-Star debut and working the clubhouse as a "sponge."
Here’s how the Dispatch Dozen Cardinals prospects did in the first half of the season
The list, known as the Dispatch Dozen, ranked Cardinals prospects based on the four Ps of prospect: Potential, Proximity, Position, and Performance. The ranking only included players who had not yet appeared in the majors, even if they entered the season with their rookie eligibility intact through 2025, making prospects like Michael McGreevy, Gordon Graceffo, and Thomas Saggese ineligible for the list since they each debuted in the majors last season.
This year’s Dispatch Dozen was topped by infielder JJ Wetherholt, the seventh overall pick in last year’s draft, and included a pair of standouts from last season’s Dominican Summer League.
Before minor league baseball resumes play Friday following MLB’s All-Star break, let’s check in on each Dispatch Dozen member:
1. INF JJ Wetherholt
Within the first half of his first full professional season, the 22-year-old Wetherholt reached Class AAA after skipping Class High-A and excelling in Class AA. Wetherholt batted .300 with a .425 on-base percentage and an .891 OPS in 62 Class AA games before receiving his promotion to Class AAA in July, a week before playing in the All-Star Futures Game. He has four hits including a double, triple and homer in his first 11 at-bats for Class AAA Memphis. He received playing time at second base in Class AA and is expected to begin playing third base as he continues his ascent.
2. LHP Quinn Mathews
Mathews, 24, missed over a month for Class AAA Memphis because of left shoulder soreness that put him on the injured list in April. The 6-foot-5 lefty rejoined Memphis at the end of May and has a 3.86 ERA, allowed a .214 batting average against and struck out 36 batters while walking 24 in 30 1/3 innings across eight starts. Mathews’ last three outings ahead of the break showed improved average fastball velocity.
Cardinals pitcher Quinn Mathews throws on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025, during spring training at the team’s practice facility in Jupiter, Fla.
Christian Gooden, Post-Dispatch
3. RHP Tekoah Roby
The 23-year-old righty’s strong start in Class AA, highlighted by a 2.49 ERA and 57 strikeouts in 47 innings, earned him a promotion to Class AAA in early June. But after making six starts and posting a .86 ERA in his most recent four starts at the level heading into the break, Roby landed on the 7-day injured list. An injury designation was not provided by the Cardinals. The IL stint makes this the third season in which Roby has been sidelined by an injury. Through the first half, Roby has a 3.10 ERA between the two levels in 78 1/3 innings, surpassing his total in each of the previous two seasons.
4. RHP Tink Hence
Following a right rib cage strain that put Hence on the IL to begin the season, Hence joined Springfield’s rotation in late June and made three starts before getting sidelined once again. Hence, 22, was placed on the 7-day IL days before the All-Star break. An injury designation was not given. The two IL stays come after Hence was limited by injuries during the last two seasons. The righty, who has yet to log 100 or more innings in a minor league season, allowed five runs in 10 2/3 innings when healthy for Springfield this season.
5. C Jimmy Crooks
The top-rated catching prospect in the Cardinals’ system heading into the year and the organization’s reigning minor league player of the year, Crooks has batted .260, slugged .440, and had a .321 on-base percentage in 68 games as Memphis’s primary catcher. Defensively, the 23-year-old has been charged with six errors in 477 2/3 innings and thrown out 28% of the base-stealing attempts against him. While he’s batted .293 and had a 53.6% hard-hit rate on fastballs, the left-handed hitter has whiffed on 50% of the curveballs he’s seen and is hitting .069 against that pitch, per Statcast. Coming off a down June, Crooks went into the break with a .344/.400/.531 slash line in eight games to begin July.
Springfield Cardinals catcher Jimmy Crooks (33) catches a foul ball for an out during the fourth inning of an MiLB game between the Tulsa Drillers and the Springfield Cardinals at ONEOK Field on Tuesday, July 30, 2024, in Tulsa, Okla.
Daniel Shular, Tulsa World
6. SS Yairo Padilla
In his leap to playing pro ball stateside, the 18-year-old switch-hitter is batting .283 with a .396 on-base percentage in 38 games in the Florida Complex League. Padilla has 24 stolen bases on 28 attempts and remained exclusively at shortstop in his second season in the minors.
7. LHP Cooper Hjerpe
The 2022 first-round pick had his third season in the minors wiped away because of Tommy John surgery. Hjerpe, who was held back by arm injuries in 2023 and 2024, has totaled 93 1/3 innings for his career. The 24-year-old lefty is expected to return midway through the 2026 season.
8. C Leonardo Bernal
Opening the season where he ended it in 2024, Bernal owns a .278 batting average and .818 OPS in Class AA. Bernal, who played 14 games in Class AA last year, has hit 11 homers and 13 doubles in 64 games this year. The 11 home runs match a career-high for the 21-year-old switch-hitter. He’s been charged with eight errors in 487 innings and thrown out 17 of the 45 stolen base attempts against him.
Cardinals new minor-league catching coordinator Ethan Goforth looks at the mitt of a top catching prospect, Leonardo Bernal, and discusses how Bernal places his finger in the mitt. Goforth, or “Go Go” to other coaches, was hired to help shape a new role within player development. He was part of the widespread staff growth ahead of the 2025 season. Goforth, who grew up a Cardinals and Yadier Molina fan, will oversee catchers at all levels. (Photo by Derrick Goold)
The first round pick from the 2023 draft is batting .211 and has a .667 OPS in 73 Class AA games. Although Davis, who reached Class AA late last season, owns a 14.3% walk rate, the 23-year-old has struck out in 29.6% of his plate appearances. He has 93 strikeouts this season as his swing rate has dipped from 44.1% across three levels in 2024 to 40.6% this year, per FanGraphs. The 23-year-old’s primary position remains center field, but he’s also received innings at the corner outfield spots.
10. RHP Chen-Wei Lin
A breakout last year while a starter in Class Low-A, the 6-foot-7 right-hander has a 4.88 ERA in 31 1/3 innings over nine Class High-A starts. Lin’s season was delayed until May because of an injury. In his return, the 23-year-old had a 1.69 ERA in 16 innings for Peoria but has since posted a 7.27 ERA and allowed an .832 OPS to opposing hitters.
11. C Rainiel Rodriguez
A Dominican Summer League standout last year, Rodriguez’s leap stateside included seven homers and five doubles in his first 16 games in the Florida Complex League before being promoted to Class Low-A by the start of June. The 18-year-old has batted .221 and slugged .423 with three homers in 27 games against more advanced pitching since the promotion.
12. CF Royelny Strop
The Cardinals’ headlining international signee this past winter began his professional career in the Dominican Summer League. In 12 games since the start of June, the 17-year-old has seven hits in 44 at-bats. He’s struck out 18 times and played primarily center field to begin his pro career.
Cardinals sign 1st-round pick Liam Doyle to club-record bonus during visit to Busch Stadium
Tennessee pitcher Liam Doyle walks off the mound during an NCAA regional game against Miami (Ohio) on May 30, 2025, at Lindsey Nelson Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn.
Kate Luffman, Tennessee Athletics
With a No. 25 jersey hanging behind him to represent the year the Cardinals made him the fifth overall selection in the MLB draft, their highest in a generation, Tennessee lefty Liam Doyle signed a deal Wednesday that sets another milestone for the club.
Doyle and the Cardinals agreed to a deal with a bonus of $7.25 million, making it the highest draft bonus in club history, the Post-Dispatch has learned.
The club shared pictures on social media of Doyle’s visit to Busch Stadium and signing Wednesday evening and confirmed the signing with an official announcement Thursday morning.
Doyle, 21, was one of the big three college lefties entering the draft and expected to go early, as he did. The junior at Tennessee was a true Friday-night-lights power source from the Volunteers’ weekend rotation. The lefty touches 101 mph with his fastball, and there are sizzle reels of him catching SEC hitters looking at his 99 mph fastball.
Doyle went 10-4 with a 3.20 ERA in 19 games (17 starts) this past season. In 95 2/3 innings, he struck out 164 batters and allowed only 63 hits.
The Cardinals shared photos of Doyle and his parents visiting Busch Stadium. The scoreboard broadcast his name and photos, and he shared with the team a greeting to their fans on social media: “At the field for the first time. It looks awesome here. Ready to get to work.”
Post-Dispatch sports columnists Lynn Worthy and Jeff Gordon discuss what the cardinals did during the summer draft and the challenges that await the team after the All-Star break.
Slot value for the fifth overall pick this year was set at $8,134,800.
That number is set by the commissioner’s office to help establish total bonus limits for teams, and clubs and their picks negotiate around that number based on leverage. For example, high school players with a strong college option can command above slot to sign with a professional team. A report during draft night had No. 3 pick and LSU ace Kade Anderson, one of the other top college lefties, agreeing to a deal at $8.8 million with the Seattle Mariners. That would come in below the $9.5 million slot for that pick.
By coming in under slot, the Cardinals have more flexibility to pursue players out of high school, such as their second pick, Ryan Mitchell, an outfielder from a Memphis-area high school who has a commitment to Georgia Tech. The flexibility could also be used to woo signings after the 10th round.
Mitchell told . He added in an interview with the local station that he’s “ready to get to work because this is just the beginning.”
The club plans to finalize and announce a deal Friday.
Mitchell said he’s heading to Jupiter, Florida, as early as Thursday to join the Cardinals at their player development complex.
That is also where Doyle’s pro career will begin.
Born in Boston, Doyle grew up in Derry, New Hampshire, where he played on a travel ball team with the son of Chris Carpenter, a Cardinals Hall of Famer and another pitcher with New Hampshire roots.
In an interview with New Hampshire’s WMUR/Channel 9 this past week, Carpenter spoke about what awaits Doyle as a member of the Cardinals: “I still run into people all over the country and other countries when I travel on vacation that are Cardinals fans. And he’ll realize that real quick that this is a passionate fan base, a passionate city that loves the game of baseball and loves their ӣƵ Cardinals.”
The signing of a drafted player is the ceremonial hand-off between the amateur scouting group, led by assistant general manager Randy Flores, and the player development group, which is now overseen by assistant general manager Rob Cerfolio. He was the first hire at that level by Chaim Bloom, the Cardinals’ incoming president of baseball operations.
There is a development plan in place for all drafted players, and it takes into account the workload from the spring as well as the level of competition. A new player’s onboarding begins at the Roger Dean Stadium facility. That is where the Cardinals’ player development campus is under construction but also houses two teams: the Low-A Florida State League’s Palm Beach Cardinals and the Complex League’s rookie-level team.
Doyle will be the first high draft pick to enter the Cardinals’ new player development structure from the start of his pro career.
A year ago, top pick JJ Wetherholt made his pro debut at Palm Beach.
He skipped High-A entering this season and has already advanced to Class AAA Memphis and represented the Cardinals as the National League’s leadoff hitter for this past weekend’s All-Star Futures Game in Atlanta.
The Cardinals have a total bonus purse of $14,238,300, the seventh-highest entering the draft. In each year of the purse system for the draft, the Cardinals have outspent their limit by slightly less than 5% and paid a tax on the overages. They are one of four teams to do that in every year of the draft, matched only by the Dodgers, Cubs and Giants.
The Cardinals scored the fifth pick in the draft through the new MLB lottery system. Despite low odds of landing in the top five and a winning record in 2024, they leapfrogged losing and last-place teams to get their highest pick since 1998, when they drafted J.D. Drew at No. 5.
The Cardinals signed infielder Wetherholt, the seventh overall pick in 2024, for a $6.9 million bonus to set the club’s previous high by a good stretch.
ӣƵ Cardinals assistant general manager Randy Flores speaks with the media via Zoom on Sunday, July 13, 2025, after the team selected four players on the first day of the MLB draft.
Cardinals must decide which road to take at trade deadline: Best Podcast in Baseball
Hochman: 'A forgotten Cardinal.' How (and why) man tries to keep Bill Sherdel's memory alive
In the Pennsylvania borough of Hanover, 809 miles from ӣƵ, a man tries to keep the memory of a Cardinal alive.
His name is John Coulson.
Well, that’s the man’s name.
You may not know the Cardinals’ name, either.
That’s the point of this.
“He’s a forgotten Cardinal,” Coulson said. “I just felt the story needed to be told to a whole new generation.”
Since the Cardinals franchise was founded in 1882, there have been hundreds and hundreds of hurlers.
John Coulson visits the gravesite of Cardinals great Bill Sherdel in McSherrystown, Pa. Coulson wrote a book and gives lectures about Sherdel’s life.
Photo courtesy of Coulson family
Well, no left-handed pitcher won more games for the Cardinals than Bill Sherdel did.
The ӣƵ southpaw Sherdel, nicknamed “Wee Willie,” totaled 153 wins from 1918-30 with a 3.64 ERA. Only right-handers Bob Gibson (251 wins), Jesse Haines (250), Adam Wainwright (200) and Bob Forsch (163) won more games for the Cardinals.
“I think the biggest problem is that he played so long ago that nobody remembers him anymore,” Coulson said. “Nobody has any real true idea of his value to the Cardinals team. Rogers Hornsby said (of Sherdel’s change-up), ‘His slow ball is poison to sluggers.’”
And so, in a Pennsylvania area known for manufacturing potato chips, Coulson tries to manufacture momentum. The 74-year-old Coulson wrote a biography of Sherdel in 2018 and, a decade prior, a book on local baseball that included Sherdel. Coulson proudly gives presentations about Sherdel — in 2024, he went to Cooperstown and spoke at a symposium at the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. Coulson has delivered his address at the Gettysburg Library, as well as at libraries and luncheons in numerous Pennsylvania towns (he was even on ABC 27’s “Good Day PA.”). If you’ve got a ear and a minute, he’ll tell you about Sherdel. And, as I can confirm, he passionately emails certain ӣƵ sportswriters. His dream is that Sherdel one day is enshrined in the Cardinals Hall of Fame.
But Coulson is not related to Sherdel. In fact, Coulson never got to meet Sherdel before Sherdel’s death in 1968. So, just why does he care this much about Bill Sherdel?
Coulson laughed in response over the phone Wednesday.
“OK, so first of all, there was the connection to our area, because it was a local celebrity that nobody knew about,” said Coulson, who previously worked a career in banking technology. “And the second piece of this, I just felt the story was lost because it happened so long ago. There are very few people around, if any, that remember him at all.”
Coulson has connected with Sherdel’s family to help share the family’s story. Sherdel’s daughter-in-law is still living at 102, Coulson said. Sherdel’s great-grandson still lives in Sherdel’s home in McSherrystown, which is 1.8 miles from Hanover (incidentally, Sherdel was born in a town called Midway, which was, sure enough, midway from Hanover to McSherrystown — as Hanover grew it essentially took over Midway).
And Sherdel’s grandson sometimes joins Coulson during his presentations and sets up, Coulson said, “maybe five to seven long tables” with memorabilia — old gloves, letters from Cardinals executive Branch Rickey and, yep, Sherdel’s 1926 World Series championship ring.
Indeed, Sherdel went 16-12 with a 3.49 ERA for the Cardinals’ first-ever title team. And in 1928, the Cards won the pennant again — and Sherdel had the team’s highest WAR, along with a 21-10 record and 2.86 ERA.
The Cardinals’ winningest lefty is also third in games pitched (465) and fifth in innings (2,450 2/3). Incidentally, he also has the fourth-most homers hit by a Cardinals pitcher, not bad for a fellow nicknamed “Wee Willie.”
“If you look at the baseball almanac, it says he was 5 foot 10, 160 pounds,” Coulson said. “But if you look at his draft card, he was listed as 5 foot 8. I think that was probably more realistic when you look at these pictures.”
Coulson has seen seemingly every picture of the pitcher — and read, literally, thousands of articles. Coulson is a baseball fanatic — “I held a bat before I held a pencil” — and his father was a local coach.
Coulson takes pride in researching and sharing Sherdel’s story. Before getting access to digitized newspapers online, “I’d go to Guthrie Memorial Library here in Hanover, and at that time, they had all these microfilmed newspaper pages. That’s the way I started, you know? I’d take my little roll of dimes along so I could print off all these pages and have this big tub with folders each year from all the pages that I printed out.”
In June of 1930, Sherdel was traded, along with Fred Frankhouse, to the Boston Braves for Burleigh Grimes. But in 1932, he rejoined the Cards, for three games, at age 35. After his retirement, Sherdel lived a quiet life in McSherrystown.
“In 1962,” Coulson said, “he received the ӣƵ Baseball Writers Association nostalgic award. This was a huge event in ӣƵ at that time. If I ever made a feature film, this would be one of the highlight scenes. Bill Sherdel came to that with his son, and he was on crutches because he had one leg amputated because of some problems with his circulation. He was never much of a speaker, but when he got up and started walking to the podium, he just broke down in tears.
“All he could say was ‘Thank you,’ and everybody stood up and gave him a standing ovation. It included people like Warren Spahn and Enos Slaughter and Stan Musial. And they all followed him into a back room after the event ended, and they’re all sitting around him and asking him questions about his time as a pitcher for the Cardinals. That’s how well thought of he was at that period of time.”
