2017 St. Louis Cardinals Midseason Top 10 Prospects

The Cardinals have long been a model of consistency, posting a winning record in 16 of the past 17 seasons. That stretch that includes 12 playoff appearances, two World Series titles and two other National League pennants.

Cardinals Midseason Top 10

1. Alex Reyes, RHP

2. Carson Kelly, C

3. Jack Flaherty, RHP

4. Luke Weaver, RHP

5. Magneuris Sierra, OF

6. Paul DeJong, SS/2B

7. Jose Adolis Garcia, OF

8. Harrison Bader, OF

9. Dakota Hudson, RHP

10. Delvin Perez, SS

But the days of the Cardinals as a model franchise seem to be fading into the distance.

St. Louis is in unfamiliar territory, with an underperforming group of veterans and a 43-45 record at the All-Star break. Randal Grichuk and Aledmys Diaz, two of the team’s top hitters last season, performed so poorly they were demoted to the minors at various points. Jhonny Peralta hit .204 and was released after 21 games. Dexter Fowler and Kolten Wong spent significant time on the disabled list. Adam Wainwright (35) and Michael Wacha (25) continued to regress from their 2013 pennant-winning peak. And the bullpen produced a middling 4.12 ERA with 11 blown saves.

The poor all-around performance has led to calls for manager Mike Matheny’s firing, and there have been other organizational changes made during the year. Third-base coach Chris Maloney was reassigned within the organization and assistant hitting coach Bill Mueller was placed on a leave of absence in May. Michael Girsch moved into the general manager’s role July 1, and John Mozeliak was promoted to president of baseball operations.

Chairman Bill Dewitt Jr. publicly stated the team would not mortgage its future to try and patch up the many holes on this unit and make a run at the NL Central-leading Brewers, although the Cardinals have been linked to Josh Donaldson in trade rumors.

The good news is most of the Cardinals’ top prospects are in the upper minors and should be available to help the big league club soon. Some, such as Paul DeJong, already have. The bad news is the early returns on high-risk high school bats from the 2015 and 2016 drafts are not promising, as Nick Plummer, Bryce Denton and Delvin Perez have all struggled, and the team did not have a pick until the third round this year due to penalties for former scouting director Chris Correa’s hacking of the Astros’ databases.

The future is where the Cardinals are going to have to look to reclaim their throne as baseball’s most stable organization. Until then, barring a stunning second-half surge, jobs are very much on the line in St. Louis.

1. Alex Reyes, RHP
Disabled list
Age: 22

Reyes entered spring training as the No. 1 pitching prospect in baseball and was expected to compete for significant innings this season. Instead he tore his ulnar collateral ligament in camp and had Tommy John surgery that knocked him out for the season. Reyes has spent the summer around the big league club at Busch Stadium and is aiming to begin a throwing program later this month. With a 12-15 month recovery timeline, Reyes has an outside shot at being ready by spring training next year.

2. Carson Kelly, C
Triple-A Memphis
Age: 22

Kelly’s first full season in Triple-A has been his best year to date. The 22-year-old remains arguably the top defensive catching prospect in the minors, and he has increased his offensive output, particularly his power. Improved pitch selection has led a career-best .449 slugging percentage and nine home runs, tying his career high.

3. Jack Flaherty, RHP
Triple-A Memphis
Age: 21

Flaherty has long possessed advanced fastball command, but scouts waited for a velocity bump. That bump happened this year, with his fastball now sitting 93-94 mph and touching 96. That increase, along with an effective slider and improving changeup, has led to Flaherty missing more bats than ever with 97 strikeouts in 94 innings.

4. Luke Weaver, RHP
St. Louis
Age: 23

The Cardinals made the decision to bring Weaver up as a reliever for his second big league stint because of the strength of his sinker-and-changeup combination. His lack of an average third pitch might keep him in the bullpen long-term, but the Cardinals are not ruling him out as a future starter.

5. Magneuris Sierra, OF
Double-A Springfield
Age: 21

Sierra made the unexpected jump from high Class A Palm Beach straight to the majors when injuries decimated the St. Louis outfield, and he held his own both offensively and defensively. Sent back down to Double-A, Sierra continues to show elite defensive tools in center field and a knack for contact with his quick, compact swing.

6. Paul DeJong, SS/2B
St. Louis
Age: 23

DeJong bashed 13 homers in 48 games to earn his first MLB callup and hit 10 more with the Cardinals, including a homer in his first MLB at-bat. He did that while moving off third base and taking over as the Cardinals’ everyday shortstop, where his reliable hands and excellent instincts have made up for a lack of experience and below-average range.

7. Jose Adolis Garcia, OF
Triple-A Memphis
Age: 24

The Cardinals signed Garcia (brother of Braves infielder Adonis Garcia) to a minor league contract with a $2.5 million signing bonus at the end of February. Known as a tooled-up outfielder with a free-swinging approach in Cuba, Garcia has adapted quickly and shown surprising pitch recognition and feel to hit, resulting in a recent promotion out of Double-A.

8. Harrison Bader, OF
Triple-A Memphis
Age: 23

Bader has improved offensively every year of his pro career and is having his best season yet at Triple-A. Bader is on pace to blow past his career high in doubles and home runs, all while keeping his average around .300 and his defense in center field sharp.

9. Dakota Hudson, RHP
Double-A Springfield
Age: 22

The 2016 first-rounder moved quickly to become the frontman in Springfield’s rotation, going 7-3, 2.63 through July 6. Hudson isn’t missing many bats (69 SO in 96 IP), but he has posted a 2.12 groundout-to-airout ratio with his moving fastball and dastardly slider. Most importantly, he has cut his walk rate nearly in half from a year ago.

10. Delvin Perez, SS
Rookie-level Johnson City
Age: 18

The red flags are starting to pile up for the 2016 first-rounder. Perez memorably failed his pre-draft drug test, was not assigned to a full-season affiliate out of camp and is struggling to hit in Rookie ball, having been demoted back to the Gulf Coast League after hitting .140 in the Appalachian League. Perez is still only 18 with excellent athleticism, providing hope his rocky start is just a badly timed blip.

RISING

• OF Oscar Mercado converted from shortstop to the outfield at the end of last year, and the move allowed him to loosen up offensively. He is playing all three outfield spots at Double-A Springfield and hitting .321/.375/.468.

• RHP Zac Gallen zoomed three levels and reached Triple-A one year after being drafted out of North Carolina. He is 7-5, 2.27 this season. Also moving quickly through the system is former rival Andrew Knizner of N.C. State, a 2016 seventh-round pick who as a catcher already has reached Double-A.

• 1B Luke Voit earned his first big league callup and provided big righthanded power with five doubles and three home runs in his first 14 games with St. Louis.

• RHP John Brebbia, an astute minor league Rule 5 pick, has earned a spot as a low-leverage reliever in the Cardinals bullpen, showing value as a low-cost bullpen arm.

FALLING

• RHP Sandy Alcantara’s subpar fastball command has nullified the effectiveness of his upper 90s heater. He was 3-5, 5.76 with 69 strikeouts and 32 walks in 79.1 innings at Double-A Springfield.

• 2B Eliezer Alvarez hit .231 with a .664 OPS at Springfield before going on the disabled list with a sprained ankle.

• OF Bryce Denton, the team’s second-round pick in 2015, hit .157 at Peoria before being demoted to short-season State College, where he was hitting .185.

• OF Nick Plummer, the team’s first-round pick in 2015, was hitting .198/.348/.281 with Peoria after missing all of last season due to injury.

HURTING

• SS Edmundo Sosa had hamate bone surgery in mid-June and has begun rehabbing. He has no formal timetable to return.

• Alvarez has missed six weeks with his sprained ankle but is expected to return to action by the end of July.

GRADUATING

• RHP Sam Tuivailala has shuttled back and forth from Triple-A but has been effective in all three of his stints in the Cardinals bullpen this season.

• OF/1B Jose Martinez became a key component of the Cardinals’ bench after a long journey that consisted of 11 seasons in the minors, five different organizations and time in independent ball.