Photo: Gordon Graceffo (Brian Walton/The Cardinal Nation)
The St. Louis Cardinals minor league system went 2-2 in Wednesday’s competitions with Memphis and Springfield picking up wins. The Memphis pitching staff combined for a shutout in a day that was light on offense for all teams, as no Cardinals affiliate tallied more than four runs.
Listed below are stats and results from games on March 23rd.
Wednesday’s Pitcher of the Day – Gordon Graceffo
Gordon Graceffo was our 2021 Rookie Pitcher of the Year after compiling a 1.73 ERA and 2.72 FIP in 26 innings (11 games). He struck out over 30% of the batters he faced (31.9%) while walking fewer than 8% (7.8%). He has also seen his fastball velocity tick up since being selected by the Cardinals in the 5th round of the 2021 MLB Draft.
When Graceffo was drafted, Baseball America had him topping out at 94. Less than a year later, he's touching 100.
Good job by both Graceffo and the Cardinals to find some extra velo. https://t.co/pHyOTGetSs
— Blake Newberry (@bt_newberry) March 24, 2022
On Wednesday, Graceffo collected eight of his nine outs via strikeout. He only allowed two base runners in three innings (one hit and one walk). The 22-year-old threw innings five, six, and seven for Memphis as part of the team’s shutout effort against the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp.
The honorable mention goes to Matthew Liberatore, who fanned three in a pair of clean innings.
Wednesday’s Hitter of the Day – Todd Lott
Todd Lott was the Cardinals’ 9th round selection in 2019 and he had a solid year at the plate last year after initially struggling a bit following the draft. In 2019, Lott had a wRC+ of 99 in rookie ball. In 2021, he crushed his way to a 132 wRC+ in 52 games at the Single-A level before receiving a promotion to High-A where he compiled a 99 wRC+.
Lott’s walk rate was cut in half after the promotion and his strikeout rate rose from 28.1% to 35.8%. Despite these negative signs, Lott maintained his power output at the higher level as he had a .203 ISO with Peoria, which was just below his .220 ISO with Palm Beach. Across both levels, Lott hit 13 home runs and 42 of his 85 hits went for extra bases.
On Wednesday, the 24-year-old reached base three times for Springfield, via a double, a walk, and a single. The honorable mention goes to Franklin Soto, the only Cardinal to homer.
Memphis (4) vs. Jacksonville (0)
| Memphis Pitching | TCN | IP | H | ER | BB | K | Notes |
| Matthew Liberatore | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | Top pitching prospect jumped from Single-A in 2019 to Triple-A in 2021 |
| Gordon Graceffo | 17 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 8 | Rookie Pitcher of the Year in 2021 has touched 100 mph |
| Memphis Hitting | Pos | TCN | AB | R | H | RBI | 2B | 3B | HR | SB | BB | K | Notes |
| Chase Pinder | OF | 4 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 26-year-old has been in the system since 2017 and peaked at #34 in TCN’s prospect rankings | |||||||
| Ben Deluzio | OF | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | Cardinals’ first round pick in the 2021 minor league Rule V Draft has stolen 110 bases in his career | ||||||
| Moises Gomez | OF | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | Free agent signing has hit 43 home runs in last three minor league seasons |
Springfield (4) vs. Pensacola (3)
| Springfield Pitching | TCN | IP | H | ER | BB | K | Notes |
| Logan Gragg | 39 | 3 | 1 | 0 (1 unearned run) | 0 | 2 | Started 20 games for Peoria last year |
| Springfield Hitting | Pos | TCN | AB | R | H | RBI | 2B | 3B | HR | SB | BB | K | Notes |
| Masyn Winn | SS | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5th ranked prospect was drafted as a 2-way player, but has only thrown one inning in his career | ||||||
| Todd Lott | 1B/OF | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 24-year-old clubbed 42 extra base hits in 2021 |
Peoria (1) at Beloit (3)
| Peoria Hitting | Pos | TCN | AB | R | H | RBI | 2B | 3B | HR | SB | BB | K | Notes |
| Mike Antico | OF | 2 | 1 | 1 | 8th round pick last year played CF for Palm Beach and posted a .224 ISO | ||||||||
| Jacob Buchberger | INF | 2 | 1 | 1 | 24-year-old played five positions last year and earned a promotion to High-A. |
Palm Beach (3) at Jupiter (7)
| Palm Beach Pitching | TCN | IP | H | ER | BB | K | Notes |
| Nick Trogrlic-Iverson | 3 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 5 | UDFA signing started 14 of his 24 appearances between Single-A and High-A last year. |
| Palm Beach Hitting | Pos | TCN | AB | R | H | RBI | 2B | 3B | HR | SB | BB | K | Notes |
| Sander Mora | INF | 1 | 1 | 1 | 21-year-old had a 62 wRC+ in 97 FCL plate appearances. | ||||||||
| Franklin Soto | 2B/SS | 1 | 1 | 1 | 22-year-old struggled to hit in Single-A last year in his first year of full season ball |
Bonus for members of The Cardinal Nation
Now Available – 2022 Cardinals Prospect Guide
The Cardinal Nation 2022 Prospect Guide is back for its fifth year. It includes 276 pages of in-depth commentary about the very best St. Louis Cardinals minor leaguers, including dozens of color photos. Order your PDF or printed book copy today!
Not yet a member?
Join The Cardinal Nation for the most comprehensive coverage of the St. Louis Cardinals from the majors through the entire minor league system. Annual members can purchase our Prospect Guide PDF at 50% off!
Follow Blake Newberry on Twitter @bt_newberry.
© 2022 The Cardinal Nation, thecardinalnation.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.