Forum Replies Created
-
Posts
-
@Cardinals27. +1 million on Hjerpe.
Hjerpe thought of as a Middle Reliever…shouldn’t be able to crack the starting rotation.
yep… the Community is a lot more optimistic on that one than Baseball America. 😀
I think Deniel lost a lot of ground in the 3B pecking order this year. Multiple injuries kept him out of the first few months of the year, and then he ended his year on the IL and missed the playoffs. Guys like Jesus Baez, Jalen Flores, Jack Gurevitch all made strides in that department. Deniel needs a clean health slate in 2027, and he needs to improve the power, while maintaining the OBP. You need to be LOUD to be noticed, 2027 is his chance.
27. Andrew Williamson
28. Sebastian Rojas ~ DSL Catcher, great offensive numbers, and looks to stick at Catcher defensively. We keep on churning the DSL hitters and Catchers, too.
—–
Cal Randall, Luis Estrella, Dawson Montesa, Cade Crossland coming up soon. I have Gurevitch ahead of a few of these next ones, but I’m expecting Gurevtich to be voted in this roundsorta close with how the community voting is going…with the exception of no Mathews and Hjerpe….and the inclusion of Roby.
Projected 2030 Cardinals Lineup
Catcher: Leo Bernal (26)
First Base: Rainiel Rodriguez (23)
Second Base: Yairo Padilla (23)
Third Base: Jesús Báez (25)
Shortstop: JJ Wetherholt (27)
Left Field: Trevor Condon (22)
Center Field: Tai Peete (24)
Right Field: Josiah Ragsdale (26)
DH: Joshua Báez (27)No. 1 Starter: Liam Doyle (26)
No. 2 Starter: Tanner Franklin (26)
No. 3 Starter: Tekoah Roby (28)
No. 4 Starter: Jurrangelo Cijntje (27)
No. 5 Starter: Quinn Mathews (29)
Closer: Sandro Santana (25)Cardinals Best Tools
Best Hitter: Rainiel Rodriguez
Best Power Hitter: Joshua Báez
Best Strike-Zone Discipline: Miguel Hernández
Fastest Baserunner: Trevor Condon
Best Athlete: Tai Peete
Best Fastball: Liam Doyle
Best Curveball: Jacob Odle
Best Slider: Brandon Clarke
Best Changeup: Cade Crossland
Best Control: Tekoah Roby
Best Defensive Catcher: Leo Bernal
Best Defensive Infielder: Jalin Flores
Best Infield Arm: Jesús Báez
Best Defensive Outfielder: Tai Peete
Best Outfield Arm: Alexander Frias2027 Top 10 list
Rank Player Position
1 Rainiel Rodriguez C / 1B
2 Liam Doyle LHP
3 Tanner Franklin RHP
4 Leonardo Bernal C
5 Joshua Báez OF
6 Jesús Báez SS / 3B
7 Tekoah Roby RHP
8 Trevor Condon OF
9 Jurrangelo Cijntje RHP
10 Tai Peete OF@PadsFS. I’m highly intrigued by Rojas. It seems we have a bit of conveyor belt of talent coming out of the DSL the last 3 or 4 seasons. Another hitting catcher that can handle himself behind the plate. Sign me up. I have Rojas and his teammate Estrella coming up soon on my list. Can’t wait
I’m not as big on Mitchell, though. His bat is super late into the zone, most of his batted balls wound up opposite field…that’s if he made contact. Horrible K rate to go with an Outstanding walk rate. So he’s not chasing pitches, no, his problem is he’s missing pitches in the zone. Problem with velocity and quality? I guess he didn’t face good pitchers in Tennessee? Here’s hoping that Peoria, or 2nd stint in Palm Beach, is much better in 2027. I hope the Cards didn’t overpay to just overpay…that was a classic Flores thing from the 2018-2021…sad, there were much better options available to overpay on in the 2025 draft….especially with Highschool Talent…the Brewers have made an art of obscure HS findings the last 10 years.
don’t sleep on Montesa and Randall. Those arms are going to surprise people once the Minors open in April.
WVU is becoming a pitching and hitter factory.
I think the Organization is going to use Randall as a starter early on in his Minor League career, and help him develop a few offspeed pitches to go with his 75-80 grade Fastball.
25. Jacob Odle
26. Andrew Williamson. 68th overall pick in the 2026 draft (Comp B after 2nd round). First 10 games as a pro (over 3 weeks) were the worst outcome one could have. He recorded most of his 25 K’s in that period, and only 1 hit I believe. His last 10 games were incredible, including 5 HRs. He admitted that he had a big adjustment period going from Draft to High A. He should be ready to go next season. I don’t like to judge harshly or favorably on any player just after the draft when…it’s usually never fair to do so. Saw him play in the Auburn Regional, and he was in a class by himself. So much power, can and does man CF, but I think he’s corner OF bound. He’s my sleeper riser for 2027. And I thought this was a good time to start talking about him.
I like Eagen and Crossland, too…almost had both here, but I stuck with my guns. I have Sebastian Rojas and Luis Estrella coming up, too. That’s the 4 I’m most excited about now….especially with the loss of Xavier Cruz…that one shocked me on Monday.
23. Emanuel Luna ~ 9 games, that was enough to see his prospect status by the professional pundits was earned, and Top 25 in this format on TCN…is warranted. 😀
24. Jacob Odle. He might walk his share per game, but if you see him pitch, especially toward the end of the year, you saw the light/promise in this kid. What if he didn’t miss that year and 1/2, makes you wonder.
There’s no rush on Franklin, and both Cerfolio and Bloom said as much in different interviews while visiting Peoria at the beginning of the year. Franklin needs the stamina build up. I think he likely starts in Springfield in 2027, maybe moves up to AAA midseason. AAA is going to be crowded anyways : Cijntje, Doyle, Molina, Fitts, Eagen, Thompson, Roby…all needing starter innings. Some may move to the BP, Thompson the most likely one. Fajardo and Franklin likely back in Springfield/Ozarks.
the draft could have a 2025 feel to it in the first round…like I said, if more HS talent reclassifies…might have another run on HS SS like in 2025.
very big draft for College Pitching… And maybe there will be more reclassifications by High Schoolers to make this a better HS draft. But for right now, outside of a few College Hitters like Hairston and the Louisville kid (name escapes me atm), it’s a big College Pitcher draft.
Get to know the entire Mississippi State weekend rotation, all 3 are mocking 1st round ~ Tomas Valincius, Ryan McPherson, Duke Stone. Volantis out of Texas looked really good this spring. Dax Whitney
Stone an extremely High Upside/High Risk pick. No doubt the stuff is good, but the eye popping ERA…not on the good side of eye popping. Look for a better year this year from Stone to cement his 1st round status. A 2nd or 3rd round pick on Stone would enticing, imo, if he were to fall.
To add to PADS’ list
Luis Estrella from the DSL was up there with Rojas in the Stats column. 7 HR, .306 BA/.439 OBP/1.015 OPS. 18yo
Branneli Franco finally showed well, and it took his addition to Palm Beach to do so. Only 5 walks in 4 games, 20 K’s, 15 IP, 4 games, 2 of those starts. He was the best pitcher available in the 2024 IFA class. Tall RHP…19yo
Xavier Cruz was blowing people away in Jupiter before injury. 42.7% K rate, 16 K/9…another tall RHP, a little thin on the frame, but that might just be his Signing Weight 3 years ago… 158LBS….21yo
@blingboy I don’t know if this helps or not, but Williamson’s last two weeks were stellar and on par with his UCF season. His first 3 weeks, was it? They were beyond brutal. I remember listening in on a interview that Williamson and Ferraro had after their sluggish start, and Ferraro said, “starting in High A, is like facing a Friday Night Starter in College every single night. You have severe timing issues that you must overcome. I think they both showed well at the end of the season. I think Williamson will surprise people next year.
not sure what surgery Ixan had on his Elbow in early September, but it was in regards to his earlier Flexor Strain from Spring. Chances are he’s cooked for 2027 regardless of the procedure.
That entire Rotation from 2025 Springfield hit a wall the following year… Mautz, Henderson, Hansen, Lin. Really sad.
17 ~ Tegan Kuhns… not in the Top 10. Okay, deep farm, maybe an argument can be made. Not in the Top 15. What are we doing here? 32nd overall pick, rated anywhere from 15th to 30th on most draft boards. Tennessee’s Friday starter, lone bright spot for the Vols this year. Excellent fastball, Excellent curveball, excellent control/command. Penalizing players for being in college is a new thing? Kuhns for 17!!! Bumper Stickers being made.
18 ~ Emanuel Luna. He got hurt…doesn’t matter. He’s a better rated prospect than any of the players that played DSL in 2025.
we need a closer, but I don’t think that should affect the way I vote.
I like Santana, but I think our farm is so deep with good quality, that Starting pitchers and Position Players have precedent over any reliever.
that being said, I do have Santana coming up rather soon.
I like Roby a lot. And I’m proud he was able to check all those boxes at the AFL. A healthy Roby is a dangerous Roby, and a deep rotation.
#13 Tegan Kuhns…great fastball and curve. Along with control, with another 2 pitches in the works to be at least passable at the MLB level. So much to like there. A great get at #32 in the draft. Really glad he fell to us.
#14 Alexander Frias ….41 XBH, 38 SB. Played 86 games last year, after 27 games in the DSL in 2025. Tailed off in the 2nd half, expected with 3X the games played this year. Pundits love him, I expect him to be ranked Top 10 in nearly every single Media Prospect List for the Cards, and he might sneak into a few Top 100 or 150 lists.
