photo: Luis Gastelum (Brian Walton/The Cardinal Nation)
The St. Louis Cardinals’ August Minor League Player and Pitcher of the Month are Springfield teammates – outfielder Joshua Baez and reliever Luis Gastelum.
St. Louis Cardinals press release
The St. Louis Cardinals today (Tuesday, September 16) announced their selections for Minor League Player and Pitcher of the Month for August, with Springfield Cardinals (AA) outfielder Joshua Baez and right-handed relief pitcher Luis Gastelum (pronounced gah-STELL-oom) taking home the honors.
Baez, 22, slashed .293/.389/.507 and ranked in the top 10 among Cardinals minor leaguers in OPS (.896), AVG, SLG, home runs (5), RBI (14), total bases (38), and stolen bases (7) in 22 games with Springfield. He reached base safely in 18 games played and his 22 hits were the second-most in a single month of his professional career. His contact rate for August ranked in the 81st percentile of all Double-A batters, while running a 11% walk rate and only striking out 13% of the time.
“JB had an outstanding August and a strong year overall. He’s making consistent hard contact, driving the ball at productive angles, and showing steady improvement at the plate,” said Cardinals Director of Player Development Larry Day. “His uptick in contact has enabled him to cut down on strikeouts and has created more opportunities to do damage, which he has capitalized on. These results reflect the hard work he’s put into refining his routines and his commitment to daily, disciplined preparation. His productive August is a clear outcome of those investments that he has made into himself.”
Selected by the Cardinals in the 2nd round (54th overall) of the 2021 MLB Draft, the right-handed hitting Baez is enjoying a breakout season after starting the year with High-A Peoria and earning a promotion to Springfield on May 29. Currently ranked as the team’s 9th-best prospect by Baseball America, the Boston native is slashing .282/.378/.481 across 112 games with 17 homers, 23 doubles, three triples, 73 RBI and 51 stolen bases. He ranks among all St. Louis minor league players in home runs (2nd), extra-base hits (2nd), RBI (3rd) and stolen bases (1st); and is just the second Cardinals minor leaguer since 2005 with 40+ extra-base hits and 50+ stolen bases in a single season.
Gastelum, 23, posted a 2.93 ERA (5 ER/15.1 IP), four saves, 0.85 WHIP, 22 strikeouts and just three walks across 10 appearances in August. Among qualified Cardinals minor league relievers (min. 12.0 IP), Gastelum ranked first in saves, strikeouts and SO/BB ratio (7.33), third in SO/9 IP (12.91) and fourth in WHIP. He was unscored upon in eight of his 10 appearances and posted an outstanding 38% strikeout rate along with a 5% walk rate.
“Gasty has been effective all season, with August being a strong highlight. He’s worked hard to improve his ability to throw strikes and enhance the quality of both his fastball and changeup,” stated Day. “He’s pitched in pitcher’s counts during 88% of at-bats, featuring a fastball averaging nearly 95 MPH and a changeup that has produced a 74% whiff rate in two-strike situations. These results reflect the consistent work he’s put into his daily routines, inclusive of his throwing programs and his mound touches. A respected teammate, many are excited to see him recognized as August Pitcher of the Month.”
Signed by the Cardinals as an International free-agent out of Mexico in April 2023, Gastelum started the season with Springfield, bypassing High-A Peoria, after pitching with Single-A Palm Beach in 2024. Since May 15, he owns a 2.94 ERA with a 0.88 WHIP, .185 average against and 69/10 strikeout-to-walk ratio across 49.0 innings pitched (34 appearances), while leading the St. Louis system with nine saves. Gastelum is currently riding an 11.0 inning scoreless streak, allowing just four hits over his last seven outings.
Brian Walton’s take
Congratulations to the organization’s choices.
Earlier, The Cardinal Nation selected Palm Beach catcher Rainiel Rodriguez as our August Player of the Month and Springfield reliever Michael Watson is our choice as the Pitcher of the Month.
Refer to the articles below for detailed stats on approximately 10 finalists for each award, including the winners.
The Cardinal Nation August 2025 Player of the Month – Rainiel Rodriguez
The Cardinal Nation’s August 2025 Pitcher of the Month – Michael Watson
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