photo: Mason Molina (Peoria Chiefs)
In a FREE article, The Cardinal Nation’s Top 50 prospect countdown for 2026 reaches no. 45 with a left-handed pitcher acquired from Texas at the deadline. Mason Molina had a solid system debut with Peoria.
Position: Starting pitcher
Age: 22 years old
Bats/Throws: R/L
Height/Weight: 6’2, 230 pounds
Acquired: Acquired from the Texas Rangers with Skyler Hales and international bonus pool space for Phil Maton on July 31, 2025
Hometown: Irvine, CA
College: Arkansas
Opened 2025: Hickory Crawdads (Low-A, Rangers)
Primary team in 2025: Hickory Crawdads (Low-A, Rangers)
Finished 2025: Peoria Chiefs (High-A)
Prior Top 50 rankings – not applicable
Click on the above photo to be taken to Molina’s player page at The Cardinal Nation, with additional biography and history information.
2025 highlights (Cardinals system only)
| Tm | IP | G | GS | ERA | WHIP | K/9 | BB/9 | K/BB | FIP | xFIP | BABIP |
| Peo | 21.2 | 5 | 5 | 2.08 | 1.38 | 11.2 | 6.2 | 1.8 | 4.19 | 4.21 | 0.265 |
Kyle Reis’ scouting report
Kyle’s ranking – no. 40
Mason Molina is the first of a relatively large group of fastball/changeup lefties that we will talk about on this list.
Molina is at the back of the group for two basic reasons. First, his third offering is trash, at least as compared to the others. Second, his command is among the worst of this group.
Mr. Walton will get into the details of how Molina found his way into the Cardinals organization, so I won’t talk much about that. What I will say is that Molina’s time at High-A after being acquired by the Cardinals was about as encouraging as you could possibly hope for from this type of arm. It does come with the caveat that with his fastball/change combination, the University of Arkansas via Texas Tech product *should* have this kind of success at this level this late in the season, but it doesn’t always happen. So, bravo to him.
The success of Molina’s arsenal is built on his heater. With interesting release characteristics to aid his arsenal, Molina’s vert-heavy heater plays way up for a pitch that lives in the low-90’s. It comes from a deceptive and slingy arm slot while he falls to the third base side. He’s shown the ability to get into the 95-mph range, and he began to add a little more velocity once he got into the organization. That is incredibly encouraging.
Under the new pitching development group, nearly all the lefties in the organization have added velocity. I have confidence that the Cardinals will help Molina deliver more than the Rangers ever could (although I remain worried as to why the Brewers gave up on him so early, but I’m also a prospect worry wart).
That fun fastball helps set up a late, arm-side fading changeup. It is a pitch that doesn’t measure out in the most exciting way, but it’s a better pitch than it measures. It’s a weapon against righties in particular, and I have no doubt that Molina could have success throwing this pitch to lefties often, if given the chance. Often in the lowest levels of the minors, and especially for college seasoned pitchers, those who throw a good heater/changeup combination can amass swing and miss. This has been the case with Molina thus far.
One thing Molina does exceedingly well is tunnel his pitches. We’ve talked about the heater and the changeup, but Molina also throws a slider and curve, and all four pitches work well together. His gyro slider is good enough to be a complimentary pitch at the two lowest levels of full season affiliated baseball. However, he throws it on the slower end and he’s going to need to get more velocity for it to matter. The curveball – while aesthetically pleasing to watch – leaves a lot to be desired and doesn’t really seem to have a place in his arsenal.
If Molina can continue to work through a little balance issue in his motion that occurs when he clears his hips upon landing his right foot, thus delaying his hip and arm timing, then we should see his command tick up along with his standing on this prospect list.
Brian Walton’s environmental impact report
Brian’s ranking – no. 50
In a year of prospect list oddities, this is the second free Mason article of two so far, following no. 50 Mason Burns. Kyle is 10 spots more bullish on Molina than I am at this still early point in his time in the Cardinals system.
In the small world department… Molina, a native of Irvine, California, played at Trabuco Hills High School in Mission Viejo. That is the same school that produced former Cardinals infielder Nick Punto along with ex-Rockies infielder Joshua Fuentes, a cousin of Nolan Arenado.
Finally, take a second look at the lead photo. Do you see the resemblance to another “MM” formerly with St. Louis (free agent Miles Mikolas)?
Background
Molina is the first of the three High-A starting pitchers acquired by the Cardinals at the 2025 trade deadline in this countdown and the only lefty, joining Nate Dohm and Frank Elissalt.
We should keep expectations in check and in context, considering the details of the trade. The Cardinals received two pitchers (Molina and Skylar Hales) plus a quarter of a million dollars of international cap space in return for two months of the services of MLB reliever Phil Maton.
Nothing against either pitcher acquired, but when the deal was announced, I was most pleased that the Cardinals were actually increasing their international spending power, rather than giving it up, as they had in recent years.
Molina was originally drafted in the seventh round (215th overall) in 2024 by the Milwaukee Brewers. He finished his collegiate time with a year at the University of Arkansas after transferring from Texas Tech University following his sophomore season. Molina signed for about $250,000, just under slot value.
The southpaw was acquired by the Rangers in January 2025 for big league right-hander Grant Anderson. The latter had been designated for assignment by Texas and was desired as bullpen depth by the defending division champion Brewers.
The move to the Cardinals meant Molina joined his third organization in just 13 months as a professional. At the time, he was the Rangers’ 26th-ranked prospect, according to MLB Pipeline.
2025 recap
Coming into the Cardinals system, Molina’s pro career consisted of just 20 professional games, including 19 starts, in 2024 and 2025.
Opening 2025 with Hickory, Molina got out of the gates quickly, receiving Carolina League Pitcher of the Week honors in mid-April thanks to a six-inning perfect start with five strikeouts. At the time of his June 20 promotion to High-A Hub City, his 62 strikeouts ranked third in the Low-A circuit.
Across the two levels in the Rangers system, Molina posted a 3-5 record and 3.19 ERA with 98 strikeouts over 79 innings. Not overpowering, with a four-seam fastball in the 90-91 mph range, Molina still averaged 11.2 strikeouts per nine innings. Undoubtedly, his ability to miss bats caught the eye of the Cardinals.
With Peoria, Molina stepped into the rotation and made five starts to close the season. Averaging just 4 1/3 innings per outing, he logged a 2.08 ERA with 27 strikeouts in 21 1/3 innings. Molina held Midwest League batters to a collective .192 average, but he also issued 15 walks for a poor rate of 6.2 per nine innings.
Molina finished his season strongly, with a 10-inning scoreless streak over two starts. That included his August 27 outing, during which he struck out a career-high nine on two hits and no walks over five innings.
2026 outlook
Molina has less than 50 career innings at High-A. Given that and the fact that the Cardinals have many solid candidates for the Springfield rotation, I expect Molina will return to Peoria to open 2026. However, the Chiefs are likely to also have more starting candidates than spots, so the spring competition should be real.
My most realistic case would be for Molina to advance to Springfield in the second half of the 2026 campaign.
Future outlook
Future Value: 35
Role: Up/down depth/middle relief
Risk: High
A scout whom I asked about Molina was right to the point. “He is a generic fastball, slider guy,” the evaluator said. “He does not have a lot of body projection. I see him as more a relief type.”
The ‘body projection’ point is in reference to his 6-foot-2, 230-pound frame likely not changing for the better in the future.
Still, when all is said and done, if Molina could grow into a big league bullpen contributor down the road, it would be a nice partial return for two months of Maton.
I could see Molina reaching Memphis during the 2027 season and debuting with St. Louis at some point in 2028. Somewhere during his Double-A and Triple-A time, as the organizational pyramid narrows, I would not be surprised if the Cardinals shift Molina to relief full-time.
Though Molina will become Rule 5-susceptible after the 2027 season, he is not likely to be taken. Or if he improves enough to be considered in that context, the Cardinals can decide at that time to protect him.
MLB debut: 2028
Rule 5 eligible: 2027
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 10 in-depth, follow-up articles breaking down the list.
50 Days, 50 Nights, 50 St. Louis Cardinals Prospects for 2026
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