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Unless a starter gets moved to relief, I see very few relief prospects. Only 3 I really like, Svanson, W Rodriguez, and Nunez. How pitiful is that? Maybe some will show improvement next year.
Who is the last homegrown relief pitcher that made it into the Cardinals bullpen and made an impact?
Almost every one of them has been a former starter or came from outside the organization. Even guys like Brebbia and Webb were from other organizations.
The only one I can think of is Tuivailala.
It doesn’t surprise or concern me how they get there. Guys like Rosenthal and Helsley are former starters, but that is the way the Cardinals develop their pitchers. They have them start as long as possible because it gives them regular work and more chances to develop their secondary pitches in less stressful situations. Generally speaking, relievers in the minors have at most two dependable pitches, which is why they were made relievers earlier. The best ones keep starting. It is all about narrowing the pyramid toward the top.
Cards27 – I see potential for Andre Granillo, Jack Ralston (if he can stay healthy), Ryan Loutos, and Logan Sawyer as all relief-only guys who could be future impactful relievers. Yeah, it’s mostly going to be failed starters, but right now we have more relief-only guys with potential than we’ve ever had. I think all 6 at some point make it to a MLB bullpen. Here’s how I’d rank the ones mentioned by future impact:
1. Granillo
2. Rodriguez
3. Svanson
4. Ralston
5. Loutos
6. Nunez
7. SawyerJnevel, I did omit Granilo, as he does have promise. But Ralston has been oft injured, and only now pitching at AA. He has a high strikeout rate, but equally shaky control. Loutos had a very good 2022, but struggled this year. And Sawyer has a small track record at 29/30.
Further down the pecking order I would include Marrero and Hickey.
But in general the FO has failed to acquire relief depth, although I had high hopes for Pacheco and Walsh/
They’ve never really focused much on true relievers. Once guys became relievers, their careers were over unless they were at AAA and even then it was a long shot. But times have changed. They now seem to be grooming some relief only prospects.
I haven’t watched much of Hickey so I don’t want to comment on him other than he’s a long ways out. Marrero is such a weird guy to watch. He has that dominant look to him like you want to see in a bulldog closer, but then many times he can’t throw strikes. I just don’t trust that he’s going to get there. But I want him to.
Loutos is kind of boring and he might not pan out as much, but I think he gets a shot at some point. I love Granillo. He gets blown up when he’s not well rested or sometimes when they throw him 2 innings. But otherwise he’s fantastic. Definitely my favorite relief prospect. He can be crazy good when he’s on. Ralston is an enigma. He began as a starter and was amazing his first partial season. He’s got some great stuff. But with all his injuries, it’s thrown off his consistency and sometimes he just can’t throw strikes. Like he gets to be terrible at times – like not watch-able terrible. But I think he gets there. It just may not be with the Cardinals.
I’m not really a Nunez fan, but he does throw hard. He just falls apart at the wrong times. One thing I look for more than anything is how guys do in tough situations. And Nunez fails that test again and again. So I don’t trust him.
Just some of my rambling thoughts . . .
As Brian said, relievers are not drafted/developed as such until they fail as starters. Siegrist is a great example. He was okay as a starter, but once moved to the bullpen his velocity spiked.
Ralston is an enigma. He began as a starter and was amazing his first partial season. He’s got some great stuff. But with all his injuries, it’s thrown off his consistency and sometimes he just can’t throw strikes. Like he gets to be terrible at times – like not watch-able terrible. But I think he gets there. It just may not be with the Cardinals.
Sounds like Flaherty.
I’m not really a Nunez fan, but he does throw hard. He just falls apart at the wrong times. One thing I look for more than anything is how guys do in tough situations. And Nunez fails that test again and again. So I don’t trust him.
Sounds like Hicks.
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