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Seems to be a lot of controversy about keeping him rather than trade for prospects this week. If we keep him how should they use him
DH or 1B.
I am not a fan of him catching since the last time he threw out a runner at second was September 1, 2024 but the Cardinals seem enamored with it. Actually what they are enamored with are his 2025 offensive numbers being slotted into the catcher’s spot. Supposedly that increases his value. The problem is that his 2025 numbers are not showing up this year. Even after last night’s heroics is OPS is almost 100 points lower than last year.
If we have the #1 catching prospect in all of MLB I’d be willing to trade him and, of course, get something in return.
If he’s reluctant to a position change then he should be moved. Hopefully we don’t have another Devers situation.
Obviously we are at where we are with the season. He will catch and DH the rest of the way but a discussion needs to be had.
Herrera simply manages a staff better than Pages from what I have seen. I think people see a catchers arm and associate their game calling to be on par with their arm quality. Herrera’s arm is worse by a lot, but it doesn’t really matter that often compared to sequencing which is an every pitch occurrence.
Catcher ERA isn’t the perfect stat, but the comparison is interesting. Herrera has the best cERA and the wmhe gets talked about you would think his arm is leading to multiple extra allowed per game.
Herrera – 347.0 innings, 3.86 cERA, -2 DRS, -2 FRV
Crooks – 186.1 innings, 4.11 cERA, -3 DRS, 1 FRV
Pages – 420.2 innings, 4.32 cERA, -1 DRS, 4 FRVIs Herrera a good defensive catcher overall? No but he is more than fine handling catching duties twice a week.
From Ken Rosenthal:
“According to rival executives speaking anonymously to speak freely, the Cardinals’ asking prices are high, and there are concerns Herrera might not be a catcher long-term.”
What we’re hearing, unlocked and free to read. With @WillSammon and @katiejwoo. https://t.co/o3WZ8mo4qS
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) July 31, 2026
If he’s reluctant to a position change then he should be moved. Hopefully we don’t have another Devers situation.
Move him to what position? 1B is occupied and I don’t think I want to see him in LF.
The concerns are valid. Unless a team is happy with a catcher who can’t throw runners out, no team is going to want Herrera to catch long term. He shouldn’t catch for the Cardinals long term.
I still maintain a move to first base is in his best interests, whether that is with the Cardinals, or some other team.
gscottar, I doubt Burleson is going to be a Cardinal much longer. Even if they don’t trade him this year, he is on the Nootbaar trajectory very soon.
I think the cardinals have toatally squandered this situation as they do a lot of things. Crooks should be catching most every day, with pages getting some starts. Herrara should be dh everyday. You not only would have found out more about crooks sooner but other teams would have as well. So if he really shined, you might get more. Herrera works for a team specifically looking for a right handed bat with some pop but cardinals as usual overvalue him. Maybe the cardinals were falling into the trap of thinking higher of this squad than they should have far as how far they might go, so crooks was given limited time. We will see how this goes.
It’s not possible to know what Marmol/Bloom are thinking. We can only guess.
I agree Crooks has not been given as much time as he probably needs to show what he can do. Some players can come to the big leagues and immediately show what they can do, like Wetherholt. Others take time, like Walker. Crooks may be somewhat in between the two of them.
The glut of catchers in the system works against Crooks. Allowing Herrera to catch makes it worse.
We can only wait and see what happens. Players have been let go from this organization only to thrive somewhere else. Others have not. It’s not something that can be predicted with any accuracy.
Crooks has not been given as much time as he probably needs to show what he can do.
The reason for that would be interesting to know, and I’m sure there is a reason, however unsound.
Crooks is catching Leahy tonight, which probably means he is not catching Mathews, who he is way more familiar with than either Pages or Herrera.
If that is the case, then the decisions being made with the catching position make me scratch my head.
I wouldn’t trade Herrera unless we are bowled over with an offer. We need time for Crooks to acclimate (if he can) to MLB pitching, with Bernal and Rodriguez getting reps.
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