18 April 2014: A batting bag of the St. Louis Cardinals at Nationals Park in Washington, D.C. where the Washington Nationals defeated the St. Louis Cardinals, 3-1. (Photo by Mark Goldman/Icon SMI/Corbis via Getty Images)
18 April 2014: A batting bag of the St. Louis Cardinals at Nationals Park in Washington, D.C. where the Washington Nationals defeated the St. Louis Cardinals, 3-1. (Photo by Mark Goldman/Icon SMI/Corbis via Getty Images) /
We have reached the point of the offseason where prospect lists abound. We continue our top 10 prospects for every team with the St. Louis Cardinals!
Our team top 10 prospect lists at Call to the Pen are spearheaded by Benjamin Chase. Today, he gives us the top ten prospects for the St. Louis Cardinals.
This season, we will be going through teams by division, in order of 2017 record. The AL East will be first, followed by the AL Central and AL West. Then the focus will shift to the National League in the same order.
The format will be as it was last season for the same lists, with a system review, which will include last season’s list. The top 10 will follow in reverse order, two players per page in order to give adequate space to each player. Major trades or international signings will lead to an updated top 10!
Finally, don’t go away after #1 is revealed as each list will also contain a player either signed in the 2017 international free agent class or drafted in 2017 that isn’t part of the top 10 and should be tracked. Last season’s mentions in that area made over half of the top 10s this season, so this is a great way to get to know a player who could be making a big splash in the organization.
When you are typically in the playoffs or in the playoff mix as an organization, it is rare that your team is going to be picking early in the draft, so it’s imperative that you do one or both of scouting and development very well. The St. Louis Cardinals have long been a team who is one of the elite in both categories.
Though the raw talent in the system is not a top-10 farm system by any measure, the Cardinals do such a tremendous job developing their talent that it’s very feasible that 2-3 players not on this list will go on to have 4-5 impact seasons at the big league level.
Recently, the biggest issue the St. Louis Cardinals have seen in their farm system is consistency of depth. Right now, the system is loaded with outfielders and right-handed pitching, and while it’s a positive to have an abundance of a position, it’s also something that does lead to questions about the development of infield prospects within the system.
Still one of the top-half systems in the majors, the Cardinals are especially stocked with players that could contribute in 2018 in some way.
Birthday (age on opening day 2018): 2/28/1995 (23) 2017 teams/levels played for: high-A Palm Beach Cardinals, AA Cardinals 2017 Stats: .266/.346/.437, 490 PA, 11 HR, 18 SB, 40/87 BB/K
Info: Highly regarded from his international play in Cuba, Arozarena drew a $1.25 million signing bonus from the St. Louis Cardinals in 2016 and made his pro debut in 2017, reaching the upper minors in his first season.
Arozarena has good balance at the plate and makes excellent contact
Arozarena has good balance at the plate and makes excellent contact, though when he goes pull side, he can generate impressive power, as evidenced by his 14 home runs in less than 300 plate appearances in the Mexican Winter League this offseason, where he made a concerted effort to pull the ball more.
Whether he will bring his offseason approach with him to the 2018 regular season remains to be seen, but he offers a balanced skillset with fringe-plus speed and good instincts on the bases along with a good idea of the strike zone.
Defensively, Arozarena is probably best suited for left field, but he handles center as well, though his arm is average, leaving him a poor fit in right. The St. Louis Cardinals will have him in the outfield mix in the upper minors to open 2018, and if he can distinguish himself, he is a rare player that could hit leadoff in the Cardinals outfield mix, so he could have some value due to that blend of skills.
Birthday (age on opening day 2018): 7/18/1994 (23) 2017 teams/levels played for: high-A Palm Beach Cardinals, AA Springfield Cardinals, AAA Memphis Redbirds 2017 Stats: 24 G, 23 GS, 132 1/3 IP, 2.72 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, 8.9% BB, 25.5% K
Info: Playing at a Division II school, Helsley had dreams of being drafted, but going in the 5th round to his favorite team growing up, the St. Louis Cardinals, was a dream come true. The way he’s pitched, he’s in a hurry to make the dream of wearing the big league club’s uniform a reality.
Shooting all the way to AAA for a spot start in 2017 in his first full season, Helsley has seen his stuff tick up with pro coaching. He now sits 93-96 with his fastball, touching 98. He uses a hard curve at 80 and a cutter that sits 87-89. His change sits around 85 and flashes average with good arm deception.
He has very good build to be a sturdy mid-rotation starter, but he will need to keep his walks in check, otherwise a move to the bullpen and the corresponding bump in his velocity that accompanies it could be his future role. For now, the St. Louis Cardinals will continue to use Helsley as a starter at AAA in 2018.
Birthday (age on opening day 2018): 12/16/1994 (23) 2017 teams/levels played for: AA Springfield Cardinals 2017 Stats: .287/.341/.428, 523 PA, 13 HR, 38 SB, 32/112 BB/K
Info: Playing shortstop in 2013, the St. Louis Cardinals drafted Mercado in the 2nd round out of high school in Tampa. Toward the end of the 2016 season, Mercado transitioned to the outfield and has found himself a natural home in center field.
He saw his offensive performance jump beyond anything he’s done before while in his first season in his new position. He flashed above-average raw power in the batting cage to go along with the plus speed that he’s always had, able to use the speed to get extra bases as well as stolen bases.
For a first year playing the position, Mercado’s work in center field in 2017 was incredibly impressive. He was able to track down balls using his plus speed early in the season, but by the end of the season, he had honed his instincts enough that he was rarely needing to use his top-end speed outside of only the toughest of plays. He also features a plus arm as well.
The spike in performance and how quick he took to center field gives Mercado a very different direction in his career trajectory. He may not have a place with the St. Louis Cardinals when he’s ready, though, so he may end up starting at AAA this season and being a key piece of a deadline deal as the Cardinals attempt to get back to the postseason.
Birthday (age on opening day 2018): 9/15/1994 (23) 2017 teams/levels played for: AA Springfield Cardinals, AAA Memphis Redbirds 2017 Stats: 25 GS, 152 2/3 IP, 3.01 ERA, 1.28 WHIP, 7.6% BB, 14.9% K
Info: Coming into the 2016 draft season, Hudson was viewed as a top 10-15 talent in the draft. He did nothing during the season to warrant sliding down the board, but he ended up falling all the way down to the St. Louis Cardinals at 34th overall.
Hudson shot up the system, reaching AAA in his first full season
Hudson shot up the system, reaching AAA in his first full season, in spite of a strike out rate that many were worried about. A big reason behind the strikeout issues was Hudson’s issue with fastball command. While the fastball is electric, sitting at 93-95, touching 97, he struggles with commanding the pitch.
He has a plus slider that ranges into the upper-80s with shar, short break. He’s worked on his curve over the year, seeing the pitch bump up to a fringe-plus. His change is more of a “show-me” pitch, but he sequences it well to make it effective.
Hudson has a role of a mid-rotation starter in his raw stuff, but he could translate to an elite reliever as well, but his stamina makes working at the starting role and building his fastball command the route that is best for he and the St. Louis Cardinals both going forward. He’ll start in AAA in 2018.
Birthday (age on opening day 2018): 9/6/1996 (21) 2017 teams/levels played for: low-A Peoria Chiefs, high-A Palm Beach Cardinals 2017 Stats: 22 G, 19 GS, 105 IP, 2.74 ERA, 1.34 WHIP, 10% BB, 21% K
Info: A Texas fireballer out of high school, the St. Louis Cardinals delayed Hicks’ debut after he was drafted in 2015. Once he got on the mound, he showed elite stuff.
Hicks has an elite fastball in movement and velocity. The top end of the velocity clears triple digits and he sits 94-97 deep into games. His best secondary offering is a power curve that sits around 80 with a hard break that generates a ton of swing and miss and scouts have been rated the pitch as a 70 on the 20-to-80 scouting scale.
His change and slider are both above average pitches, but his delivery is busy and can throw off his command, which is where his 10% walk rate came into play.
Hicks has the projection of a mid-rotation starter or high-end reliever with his raw stuff. However, if he can really calm his delivery and get that walk rate to around 6-7%, he could end up a high-end #2. The St. Louis Cardinals will determine how much work is needed yet in his delivery and send Hicks out to either high-A or AA based on how he’s able to control his delivery.
Birthday (age on opening day 2018): 6/3/1994 (23) 2017 teams/levels played for: AAA Memphis Redbirds, MLB St. Louis Cardinals 2017 Stats: Minors: .283/.347/.469, 479 PA, 20 HR, 15 SB, 34/118 BB/K; Majors: .235/.283/.376, 92 PA, 3 HR, 2 SB, 5/24 BB/K
Info: In the 3rd round of the 2015 draft, the St. Louis Cardinals grabbed one of the top college performers in the draft, Florida outfielder Harrison Bader.
Bader zipped through the Cardinals system, reaching the major leagues in just his second full season
Bader zipped through the Cardinals system, reaching the major leagues in just his second full season. However, the speed at which he sped through the system meant that he did miss some needed development, specifically in his pitch and zone recognition.
Bader has impressive power, certainly plus raw, and some view it as double-plus, with above-average speed that plays well in the outfield, though his base-stealing instincts don’t show his true speed.
In the outfield, Bader plays well in all three spots and has enough arm to play all three spots. Without development of his strike zone discipline, Bader could be a very good fourth outfielder, but if the St. Louis Cardinals give him more time in AAA, he could build the discipline to be an above-average regular.
Birthday (age on opening day 2018): 6/22/1995 (22) 2017 teams/levels played for: AAA Tacoma Rainiers, AAA Memphis Redbirds 2017 Stats: .246/.321/.499, 557 PA, 31 HR, 14 SB, 54/151 BB/K
Info: The son of a bodybuilder, O’Neill has been known for two things in his minor league career – his well-defined arms and smashing baseballs. O’Neill has incredible power, hitting his 100th minor league home run in his 5th minor league season, including 55 over the last two years in the upper minors.
O’Neill has been known for two things in his minor league career – his well-defined arms and smashing baseballs
O’Neill has double-plus power with incredible bat speed, but he also knows he has that bat speed and power, and can lean into it too far, which hurts his ability to cover the plate, leading to a lower average and higher strikeouts than he would necessarily be expected to with his bat speed and ability to barrel balls.
Though he does swing plenty and miss, O’Neill knows the strike zone well enough to take a walk, posting near or above 10% walk rates through the minors. He’s also a surprisingly good athlete, with average to above-average raw speed, able to play all three outfield positions, though his fringe-plus arm plays best in right field.
O’Neill will likely be headed to AAA in 2018 until there is a spot in the St. Louis Cardinals outfield for his booming bat.
Birthday (age on opening day 2018): 10/15/1995 (22) 2017 teams/levels played for: AA Springfield Cardinals, AAA Memphis Redbirds, MLB St. Louis Cardinals 2017 Stats: Minors: 25 GS, 148 2/3 IP, 2.18 ERA, 1.04 WHIP, 6% BB, 25.% K; Majors: 6 G, 5 GS, 21 1/3 IP, 6.33 ERA, 1.55 WHIP, 10.6% BB, 21.3% K
Info: Flaherty graduated from the same high school as fellow first round pitchers Max Fried and Lucas Giolito, though he was seen as much more of a project with a good frame when he came out of high school with his wide shoulders and 6’4″ height.
The St. Louis Cardinals took Flaherty at the back of the first round in 2014 and saw him develop slowly until 2017, when a velocity jump came along with a physical gain, allowing him to add 2-3 MPH to his sitting velocity, and he scaled up the upper minors to the majors all in one season.
Flaherty’s fastball works in the 93-95 range with weight and late wiggle low in the zone. He pairs that with an above-average slider that has hard, sharp movement that drew swing and miss. He has a sharp-breaking curve that works as a second breaking pitch, but that he can struggle with the feel on.
Flaherty’s change doesn’t have a lot of velocity separation, but he gets excellent arm deception and movement on the pitch, however, it can flatten out when he overthrows the pitch, and it’s an inconsistent pitch in spite of some of the best change movement in the minors.
His quick major league look gave an idea of what happens with Flaherty when he loses his location as he began aiming his fastball and got hit hard. He will be a favorite for a rotation spot with the St. Louis Cardinals out of spring training in 2018 and will hope to tick up his location to improve his performance.
Birthday (age on opening day 2018): 7/14/1994 (23) 2017 teams/levels played for: AAA Memphis Redbirds, MLB St. Louis Cardinals 2017 Stats: Minors: .283/.375/.459, 280 PA, 10 HR, 33/40 BB/K; Majors: .174/.240/.217, 5/11 BB/K
Info: Tabbed out of high school in the 2nd round, Kelly was a 3rd baseman known for his bat over his glove before the St. Louis Cardinals moved him to catcher. He responded by delving into the position change with fire and dedicating his body and his mind to the craft, becoming one of the better-reputed defensive catchers in all of the minor leagues.
Kelly’s bat is behind his glove, but it’s certainly no liability. He has excellent strike zone judgement, and that allows him to use his quick wrists to hunt out the pitch he wants to drive. He has a line drive stroke, so he hits more doubles than home runs, but it’s still solid, loud contact.
Defensively, Kelly has excellent hands and textbook footwork. He has very good instincts on when to move and when to reach on pitches, blocking very well, and then using his plus arm to control the run game.
His elite defense will give Kelly the chance to spend a lot of 2018 as Yadi Molina’s backup for the St. Louis Cardinals, but the Cardinals did choose to send him down to AAA, and that could be best for his development in order to give him everyday playing time.
Birthday (age on opening day 2018): 8/29/1994 (23) 2017 teams/levels played for: none 2017 Stats: none
Info: Reyes was a high school ballplayer in New Jersey who was fairly nondescript before he spent a year living with family in the Dominican, where he was spotted throwing a big fastball and that led to a $950,000 bonus from the St. Louis Cardinals in 2012.
Reyes spent his year of rehab focusing on fitness and nutrition and is notably stronger and leaner as well this spring
Reyes’ big fastball has been his calling card ever since, reaching triple digits as a teenager and even showing 101 in the major leagues in his debut in 2016. It’s not just his top end velocity, though, as he averages 97 MPH with his fastball and can hold that velocity past the sixth inning, rare velocity that deep in a game.
He’s not all heat, though, as he features a hammer curve around 80 MPH and his change sits around 90, giving him three solid velocity points in his major pitches, all of which play at plus at least at times. Reyes was also working with a slider in the minors in 2016 when he was starting and struggled with locating the pitch but had very good break on it.
Reyes has always been a max-effort guy through his delivery, which has made it difficult for him to throw his plus pitches for strikes consistently, even though he’s tallied plenty of strikeouts because of how difficult it is to square up any of their stuff.
While missing all of 2017 due to Tommy John surgery in spring of 2017, Reyes spent his year of rehab focusing on fitness and nutrition and is notably stronger and leaner as well this spring. The St. Louis Cardinals will be taking things easy with Reyes this year, likely either having him spend his time in AAA or the bullpen.
Birthday (age on opening day 2018): 6/28/1996 (21) 2017 teams/levels played for: short-season A-ball State College Spikes, low-A Peoria Chiefs 2017 Stats: .339/.388/.508, 259 PA, 4 HR, 3 SB, 18/48 BB/K
Info: After an impressive career at North Carolina State, Mendoza was a very intriguing option as an athletic player who could play short in a pinch but profiled as a third baseman. The St. Louis Cardinals drafted Mendoza in the 11th round in June and were very pleased with his pro debut.
Mendoza was a two-way player out of high school when he went to N.C. State, Mendoza chose to give up pitching when he lost his spot in the rotation his freshman year, but the arm still remains strong. He also shows very good first step on defense, which has allowed him to handle shortstop at times, but he’s definitely best cast as a third baseman, where he could be a plus defender.
Offensively, Mendoza is quite intriguing. He struggled through the college season before he got in tune late in the season and went on a tear. He has tremendously quick hands and generates line drives across the field with his power, frequently getting hard contact, though he could stand to loft the ball a bit more.
Mendoza does have surprising speed at his top end, though with his solid first step defensively, his first step on the bases is not great, so he’s not a tremendous base stealer, but his speed is an asset going first to third or second to home.
In all, while he’s not a guy that many would have put as their top follow in the St. Louis Cardinals system, he’s the exact type of guy whose tools the Cardinals typically maximize and get the most out of in their development system. He should open the 2018 season in full-season ball with one of the A-ball teams.
