photo: Jimmy Crooks (Brian Walton/The Cardinal Nation)
Springfield catcher Jimmy Crooks receives The Cardinal Nation’s nod as top hitter in the St. Louis Cardinals system last month. His stats are compared to seven other finalists. All Top 10 prospects and last month’s winners’ results are also reviewed.
This article details the selection of The Cardinal Nation’s Player of the Month. Considered were offensive results during August across the entire St. Louis Cardinals system. The winner as well as a group of seven runners up are highlighted.
With the MiLB qualifying rule of 2.7 plate appearances per team game played, we used 73 PAs as the line this month for the four full-season teams (27 games played). At the short-season levels, the Florida Complex League completed its season in late July and the Dominican Summer League came in at 16 games and 43 PAs, before their schedule concluded.
As a result, a total of 34 hitters in the system qualified. Eight of them separated themselves with an OPS above .850. All five active levels of the system are represented, from Triple-A Memphis all the way down to the DSL.
They are bunched in groups – two with an OPS in the upper .800’s, two in the lower .900’s, one in the upper .900s and three in the 1.000s.
Demographics
There is good balance in our finalist population. Triple-A Memphis, Double-A Springfield and the rookie-level Dominican Summer League Cards lead the way with two finalists each. The two A-level clubs, Peoria and Palm Beach, have one each.
Reminder
Please remember, this is NOT the “Player of the Month Among Top Prospects”. Every player in the system has an equal chance, with only their performance during the month used to differentiate the best of the best. Age and level, which are key prospect considerations, are not factors here, either.
We will take two views of the data. The first look will be basic counting stats, followed by rate stats. Names are listed in the same sequence in both tables, in descending OPS order.
Counting stats
| August hitter | Tm | G | PA | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | SB | CS | OPS |
| Jimmy Crooks | Spr | 18 | 79 | 68 | 12 | 26 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 20 | 8 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 1.061 |
| Rainiel Rodriguez | DSL | 11 | 50 | 32 | 7 | 9 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 14 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 1.051 |
| Bryan Torres | Spr | 23 | 108 | 91 | 20 | 38 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 12 | 13 | 16 | 4 | 0 | 1.029 |
| Darlin Moquete | Peo | 19 | 75 | 65 | 20 | 18 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 13 | 7 | 23 | 8 | 1 | 0.982 |
| Matt Koperniak | Mem | 23 | 103 | 88 | 13 | 27 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 16 | 14 | 21 | 1 | 1 | 0.921 |
| Ian Petrutz | PB | 21 | 82 | 69 | 17 | 23 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 15 | 14 | 8 | 4 | 1 | 0.918 |
| Mike Antico | Mem | 25 | 107 | 98 | 19 | 26 | 4 | 1 | 7 | 18 | 9 | 27 | 3 | 2 | 0.868 |
| Yoerny Junco | DSL | 14 | 64 | 55 | 6 | 18 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 12 | 6 | 10 | 3 | 2 | 0.864 |
What immediately stands out to me is Crooks’ 20 RBI in just 18 games. That not only leads our finalists but is also the best August showing across the entire Cardinals system. It leads one to wonder how good his month could have been had he not gone on the injured list on the 27th.
From among all qualifiers, Crooks’ OPS of 1.061 stood tallest, closely followed by our July Player of the Month, DSL All-Star catcher Rainiel Rodriguez at 1.051.
Crooks’ teammate and leadoff man Bryan Torres leads the Texas League in batting average for good reason and his August OPS came in a strong third at 1.028. His eight doubles were the most among our finalists and second in the system. (Memphis’ Cesar Prieto hit nine.)
Like Torres a versatile infielder-outfielder, Peoria’s Darlin Moquete posted a very respectable .982 OPS in August. But perhaps what is most eye-opening about Moquete’s month is his impressive power and speed combination. His seven home runs tied for most in the system last month and the eight steals (in nine attempts) was second in the organization (to Chiefs teammate Brody Moore with 11).
Moquete has stolen bases before, but the long ball prowess came out of left field. In five professional seasons prior to 2024, Moquete had just 24 total home runs.
One of those tied with seven home runs is another player more known for his table setting rather than run production, Memphis’ Mike Antico. The outfielder also drove in 18 runs, tied for second in the system after Crooks.
Rodriguez and first-year Palm Beach outfielder Ian Petrutz (.918 OPS) share the impressive distinction of walking more than striking out. Crooks and Torres were close.
As seems the case every month, Memphis outfielder Matt Koperniak does not top the list in any category, yet there he is doing well across the board. His 12 extra base hits tie Antico for the most among finalists and his .921 OPS is strong.
Rate stats
| August hitter | Tm | PA | BB% | K% | K/BB | BABIP | ISO | BA | OBP | SLG | OPS |
| Jimmy Crooks | Spr | 79 | 10.1% | 13.9% | 1.4 | 0.400 | 0.235 | 0.382 | 0.443 | 0.618 | 1.061 |
| Rainiel Rodriguez | DSL | 50 | 28.0% | 18.0% | 0.6 | 0.348 | 0.250 | 0.281 | 0.520 | 0.531 | 1.051 |
| Bryan Torres | Spr | 108 | 12.0% | 14.8% | 1.2 | 0.493 | 0.121 | 0.418 | 0.491 | 0.538 | 1.029 |
| Darlin Moquete | Peo | 75 | 9.3% | 30.7% | 3.3 | 0.306 | 0.354 | 0.277 | 0.351 | 0.631 | 0.982 |
| Matt Koperniak | Mem | 103 | 13.6% | 20.4% | 1.5 | 0.369 | 0.216 | 0.307 | 0.398 | 0.523 | 0.921 |
| Ian Petrutz | PB | 82 | 15.6% | 8.9% | 0.6 | 0.377 | 0.101 | 0.333 | 0.483 | 0.435 | 0.918 |
| Mike Antico | Mem | 107 | 8.4% | 25.2% | 3.0 | 0.297 | 0.276 | 0.265 | 0.327 | 0.541 | 0.868 |
| Yoerny Junco | DSL | 64 | 9.4% | 15.6% | 1.7 | 0.370 | 0.145 | 0.327 | 0.391 | 0.473 | 0.864 |
As we get into the rate stats, we see that Rodriguez has the highest walk rate by far (28%), with Petrutz’ 8.9% strikeout rate also very notable.
Petrutz, Koperniak, Torres and Crooks all walked at a rate above 10%, while the Springfield duo of Crooks and Torres were the only finalists after Petrutz with a strikeout rate under 15%.
Put them together and Petrutz and Rodriguez had the best strikeout to walk ratio, followed by Torres and Crooks. At the other end of the spectrum are Moquete and Antico, both due to high strikeout rates of 30.7% and 25.2%, respectively.
All of the top finalists have elevated BABIPs, led by .493 for Torres, .400 for Crooks, .377 for Petrutz and .369 for Koperniak. A plus for Antico is his .297 BABIP, with he and Moquete (.306) the only ones around the expected .300 mark.
In ISO, isolated power, four came in at .235 and above. On top are Moquete and Antico, followed by Rodriguez and Crooks.
In batting average, the Double-A duo of Torres (.418) and Crooks (.382) stand far above the other finalists.
In OBP, Rodriguez posted a ridiculous .520, with Torres and Petrutz pushing .500. Next was Crooks at .433.
The big two in slugging are Moquete at .631 and Crooks at .618. Also, with a very strong SLG over .500 are Antico, Torres, Rodriguez and Koperniak.
In a balanced performance, Crooks is The Cardinal Nation’s August Player of the Month.
To summarize, Crooks led finalists in RBI and OPS. Springfield’s catcher also was second in batting average, slugging and lowest strikeout rate.
About the winner
This performance is not a fluke. Crooks is The Cardinal Nation’s eighth-ranked prospect and only because of his injury did he likely not receive a well-earned promotion to Memphis when St. Louis catcher Willson Contreras was injured recently.
During the entire second half, Crooks and Torres have been battling for the lead in the Texas League batting race. Crooks leads the Double-A circuit in slugging and OPS and is second in BA and OBP with a slash line of .321/.411/.503/.914.
Defensively, Crooks has thrown out 33% of attempted base stealers this season (25 of 75) and has been a season-long leader for the playoff-bound Springfield team.
The 22-year-old stands 6-foot-0 and weighs 230 pounds. The left-handed hitter was selected by St. Louis from the University of Oklahoma in the fourth round of the 2022 First-Year Player Draft, taken 127th overall.
Top 10 hitters in the system during August
Here is how the other top 10 hitters in the Cardinals organization per The Cardinal Nation’s rankings fared last month.
#1 J.J. Wetherholt (Palm Beach) – Based on the results of the shortstop’s first full month as a professional, the organization’s decision to start Wetherholt at Low-A vs. High-A seems warranted.
In August with Palm Beach, the 2024 first-rounder slashed .219/.356/.288/.644 with his highlight a walk rate of 15.6% (against a 11.1% K rate).
#6 Thomas Saggese (Memphis) – After a tepid first half, the infielder was the organization’s choice as July Player of the Month. However, Saggese backslid in August, with a slash line of .235/.310/.461/.771.
His highlights include seven home runs and 14 driven in, not categories one expects him to be among the leaders in. Saggese’s strikeout rate of 23% is a bit concerning, especially against a walk rate of just 6.2%.
#7 Victor Scott (St. Louis) – Pressed into duty with St. Louis due to Michael Siani’s injury, Scott had just 10 plate appearances with Memphis last month, during which he went 4-for-9 with a walk for a .500 OBP.
#9 Leonardo Bernal (Peoria/Springfield) – The catcher received a promotion to Springfield late in the month after a solid season with Peoria. In 18 August games with the Chiefs, the 20-year-old had a nine RBI and a .702 OPS. To open the Double-A segment of his career, Bernal is just 2-for-13 with a walk.
#10 Chase Davis (Peoria) – The consensus June Player of the Month was promoted to High-A as July concluded. In his first full month in the Midwest League, the 2023 first-rounder performed well with a line of .286/.369/.440/.809.
July’s winners in August
Last month, The Cardinal Nation recognized Rainiel Rodriguez, whose August results are included among the finalists above. The Cardinals organization selected Saggese, covered in the section just prior to this one.
In related news, on Tuesday, September 3, the Cardinals announced the paperwork roster assignment change moving Rodriguez from the DSL to the Florida Complex League. I say “paperwork” because both rookie team’s 2024 season is over.
This formalizes what already seemed obvious – the 17-year-old will play his second professional season in the US.
What is next?
The Cardinal Nation’s August Pitcher of the Month award is coming next. In addition, the Cardinals organization should also name their own selections of August Player and Pitcher of the Month in the upcoming days.
Once again this month for members of The Cardinal Nation, we will dig deeper into the prior month’s stats for more players in the system, both hitters and pitchers, than are covered here.
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