Cardinals’ Ryan Loutos Surprises Even Himself With MLB Callup
When the Cardinals reached out with an unusual job offer for an undrafted, former Division III standout within their organization, they got more than a computer programmer who helped them develop an app for pitching prospects to use.
They got a pitching prospect.
While he worked on a project for the Cardinals’ front office, righthander Ryan Loutos added velocity, enhanced his standing as a pitcher and ultimately rose to the majors, making history for his alma mater.
The 25-year-old Loutos debuted on June 1 and became the first Washington University alum to appear in an MLB game since Dal Maxvill nearly 50 years earlier.
“I worked for it—to be as good as I possibly could be, but I never knew this was possible,” Loutos said. “I think back to senior year in high school and just hoping to get a chance to play a little bit longer and not thinking I had really any chance, to be honest.”
Loutos drew scouts as he led the Bears to the D-III World Series as a senior. He went 11-1 with a 1.33 ERA and a school-record 116 strikeouts. At 6-foot-5, 240 pounds, he had the frame for power but not the output at that point.
The Cardinals signed Loutos in 2021, shortly after he graduated with a bachelor’s degree in computer science. He had lucrative offers to live in Chicago but opted to stick with baseball as long as he could.
The message wasn’t subtle when the Cardinals offered him a job in analytics, suggesting he was “closer to working in the front office than getting a place on the 40-man roster.”
One of the projects he worked on was a database of pitch grips that Cardinals minor leaguers could access through an app. At the same time, he used some of that data to improve his own pitches, with one clear goal: “gain velo.”
Loutos added weight, strength and speed. He touched 97 mph in spring 2023.
Loutos put himself back on the prospect map at Triple-A Memphis this season. Through his first 31.2 innings, he struck out 36 strikeouts to go with a 2.27 ERA.
REDBIRD CHIRPS
— Double-A Springfield righthander Tink Hence was selected for a second Futures Game appearance but did not plan to participate in the annual showcase because of a health concern. Hence left a recent start due what the team described as cramps, and the pitcher and Cardinals wanted to be conservative with his midseason workload. Through 12 Texas League starts, Hence had a 3.29 ERA with 73 strikeouts in 54.2 innings.
— Less than a year after the Cardinals drafted him 21st overall, Low-A Palm Beach outfielder Chase Davis shattered his slow start and won the organization’s player of the month award for June. The 22-year-old slugged .683 in June with 12 extra-base hits, 23 RBIs and an organization-leading 1.147 OPS. He reached base safely in 18 of 20 games. The surge buoyed Davis’ slash line to .220/.339/.388 through 65 games.
