photo: Jonathan Mejia triples (Brian Walton/The Cardinal Nation)
The Cardinal Nation’s Top 50 prospect countdown for 2025 reaches no. 25 with one of the Cardinals’ most expensive international signings ever. Is Jonathan Mejia ready for Class-A in his fourth year? Free report!
Position: Second base/Shortstop
Age: 19 years old
Bats/Throws: B/R
Height/Weight: 6’0, 191 pounds
Acquired: International free agent signed on January 15, 2022
Hometown: Bayahibe, Dominican Republic
College: none
Opened 2024: Florida Complex League Cardinals (rookie)
Primary team in 2024: Florida Complex League Cardinals (rookie)
Finished 2024: Florida Complex League Cardinals (rookie)
Prior Top 50 rankings – 2024 #19, 2023 #11
Click on the above photo to be taken to Mejia’s player page at The Cardinal Nation, with additional biography and history information.
2024 highlights
| PA | AVG | OBP | SLG | OPS | HR | SB | CS | BB% | K% | BABIP | wRC+ |
| 205 | 0.299 | 0.395 | 0.425 | 0.820 | 3 | 18 | 4 | 12.2% | 25.4% | 0.405 | 127 |
Blake Newberry’s scouting report
Blake’s ranking – no. 27
(current grade/future grade)
| Hit | Power | Run | Arm | Field | FV |
| 25/55 | 25/45 | 55/55 | 50/50 | 30/50 | 40 |
Jonathan Mejia is a difficult player to place since he has yet to do more than make a brief hiatus above rookie ball. Still, he has shown good tools at a premium position and has hit well at a young age, so he is certainly deserving of a spot on this countdown.
Mejia is more of a hit over power player at this point in his career and while that looks likely to remain the case as he matures, he could still add some power to his game as he gains strength.
Mejia finished the 2024 season with a .299 average and that was heavily driven by his ability to consistently hit line drives and a willingness to use the opposite field. He only hit three home runs but he also clubbed nine doubles and a pair of triples which helped boost his power output.
He’s more of a gap-to-gap kind of power hitter who may grow into some over the fence power as he matures but he is never likely to be a huge home run hitter.
Mejia has plenty of natural feel to hit and a natural ability to find the barrel from both sides of the plate but there are still some swing-and-miss issues for the 19-year-old. His 25.4% strikeout rate is a bit high for a hit-over-power kind of player, but it still represents an improvement from his 2023.
He will need to make more consistent contact to remain an impactful hitter in full season ball but his natural feel for hitting bodes well for his ability to do so down the road.
Mejia is also a patient hitter who is more than willing to take a walk and rarely expands the zone. He has posted walk rates above 12% in each of his three professional seasons. That remains a strength, when paired with his solid hit tool, helps him get on base at a high clip.
Defensively, Mejia profiles as an up-the-middle player but he moved off shortstop as his primary position in 2024, which is certainly noteworthy. The 19-year-old started 34 games at second base compared to only 14 at shortstop, so it’s not clear that Mejia is a future shortstop at this point.
Still, he has good athleticism and solid range so he should be able to add value wherever he ends up playing defensively. He still needs to gain consistency with the glove but that will come with time.
Overall, Mejia is a player with a lot of promise who signed for $2 million and has been a well above league average player in both the DSL and the Complex League. The next step is for him to prove that he can stick in Single-A.
Summary: Jonathan Mejia is still far away from the majors but possesses a great natural feel for making solid contact, makes great swing decisions, and should have enough athleticism to stick up the middle.
Brian Walton’s environmental impact report
Brian’s ranking – no. 24
Background
The Dominican Republic native was a highly coveted international free agent signed by St. Louis on the January 15 opening of the 2022 international signing period. Mejia was ranked no. 14 among eligible signees, according to MLB Pipeline.
His signing bonus was reportedly $2 million, almost one-third of the organization’s total spending of just under $6.3 million for the year.
It was the most the Cardinals have paid for an international teen since Cuban outfielder Jonatan Machado, came to terms for $2.35 million in July 2016. However, that isn’t an apples-to-apples comparison. In the 2016-2017 period, organizations could aggressively overspend, which is no longer allowed.
Equivalent to a young high school junior at 17 years of age, Mejia was the youngest position player on the 2022 Dominican Summer League Cardinals and the second-youngest player in the entire Cardinals organization.
Mejia had an exceptional rookie season with the bat. In fact, his 145 wRC+ was second in the entire system, only behind The Cardinal Nation’s Player of the Year Moises Gomez (149).
The shortstop slashed .267/.418/.479/.897, with 14 doubles, three triples, five home runs and 34 RBI. all ranking in the top three on the DSL Cards. His on-base percentage was tops among qualifying hitters across the Cardinals system. However, that OBP was aided by the team-leading 10 hit-by-pitches he absorbed.
In 2022, Mejia walked 33 times against 48 strikeouts. He led the organization in on-base percentage at .418 thanks to a free pass rate of 15.9%, also highest among all Cardinals at all levels. His .348 BABIP may have contributed, however.
It was not surprising the Mejia moved to the US for 2023, though he was only 17 years of age. He remained behind in extended spring training when the full season teams broke camp. He was promoted to Palm Beach on May 23, shortly after he celebrated his 18th birthday.
However, three weeks later, on June 12, shortly after the Florida Complex League opened, the Cardinals sent him back to rookie ball. It was a low-risk move giving him a shot in Low-A, with the entire rookie league schedule still to be played.
Of course, had Mejia performed well, he would have stayed with the Beach Birds. He didn’t play often, making just 14 plate appearances over six games, with one hit, a double (.083), and two walks taken (.214 OBP). The switch-hitter fanned five times (35.7% K rate).
At the end of June 2023, the Cardinals gave Mejia a second shot at the Florida State League. He remained with Palm Beach for about the same length of time as his first visit before he was returned to rookie ball in mid-July. That time up, he went 2-for 16 (.125), both singles. He also drew one walk for a .188 OBP and a .313 OPS. He struck out five times.
Mejia returned to the backfields but did not earn a third shot at Low-A in 2023. Overall, in the FCL, he slashed .173/.331/.288/.619 in 131 plate appearances over 30 games. Oddly, he had no doubles, but three triples and two home runs with eight RBI and seven steals in eight tries. His strikeout rate was 28.2% and his walk rate was a strong 18.3%.
For the season across both levels, his .159 average and .258 slugging percentage were the lowest of any Cardinals farmhand with at least 150 plate appearances. Even with his .313 OBP, his .571 OPS was third lowest in the system.
2024 recap
Mejia performed much better in his second season in the Florida Complex League. With rookie ball starting a month earlier than previously, he played in his first game on May 4.
Even so, the Cardinals were not tempted in 2024 to give Mejia a third shot at Palm Beach, or if they were tempted, they talked themselves out of it. Instead, when the FCL schedule ended in late July, so did Mejia’s season.
Mejia led the FCL Cards in many key offensive categories, including a .299 batting average, .395 OBP, .820 OPS, 52 hits and 18 steals (in 22 attempts, for a strong 81.8% success rate). He tied for the team lead in doubles with nine and was one short of the team lead in free passes taken, 25. His wRC+ was 127, sixth among qualified hitters across the entire Cardinals system, but his .405 BABIP causes a pause.
Perhaps a bit surprisingly, Mejia’s strikeout rate of 25.4% was the fourth lowest on a team of free swingers that as a group fanned 55 more times than any other FCL squad. His walk rate of 12.2% was fourth lowest among FCL Cardinals, who as a team drew the fewest walks in the 15-team rookie league.
Playing 35 games at second base and 16 at shortstop, Mejia contributed 15 miscues to the Cardinals’ league-worst 1.8 errors per game average. In a possible hint as to his future defensive focus, Mejia’s fielding percentage at second of .937 was far better than his mark at short, just .893.
At the plate, Mejia’s .820 OPS was a 200-point improvement over his .619 mark with the same team in 2023. Following the season, Mejia was named The Cardinal Nation’s FCL Cardinals Player of the Year for 2024.
2025 outlook
It finally seems time for Mejia to rejoin Palm Beach, likely on Opening Day – following his prior appearances back in 2023. Since then, he put in another season in the FCL and performed very well in 2024.
We need to remember that Mejia will play at 20 years of age in 2025, so his assignment to Class-A is not a problem. Likely, Mejia and the Cardinals hope he can approach his 2022 and 2024 results in 2025 with Palm Beach and that his 2023 was an aberration.
Future outlook
Future Value: 40
Role: Reserve
Risk: High
Time is not yet crucial for Mejia, but the clock is ticking more loudly. His fourth professional season (2025) would be an ideal time for him to move ahead more rapidly. He will become Rule 5 eligible after the 2026 season. So, two years from now, the Cardinals will have to make a 40-man roster decision about Mejia. With a full year per level with no in-season promotions, he would still not have reached Double-A by then.
In the most optimistic case, if Mejia does join the 40-man roster in November 2026, he could make his MLB debut later in the 2027 season. But that feels too aggressive based on his career progress to date. So, I will go with 2028 for now. A good 2024 would really help his MLB chances.
MLB debut: 2028
Rule 5 eligible: 2026
Exclusively for members of The Cardinal Nation
Our 2025 Top 50 series continues
To see the entire list of top Cardinals prospects, grading scales and remaining article schedule, click here. This includes the Top 50 countdown and 11 in-depth, follow-up articles breaking down the list.
50 Days, 50 Nights, 50 St. Louis Cardinals Prospects for 2025
Not yet a member?
If you enjoyed this article, please consider joining The Cardinal Nation to receive the most comprehensive coverage of the St. Louis Cardinals from the majors through the entire minor league system, including access to every article in our 2025 Top Cardinals Prospects series.
Brian Walton can be reached via email at brian@thecardinalnation.com. Follow Brian and The Cardinal Nation on X/Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Bluesky.
Follow Blake Newberry on X/Twitter @bt_newberry.
© 2024 The Cardinal Nation, thecardinalnation.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.