St. Louis Cardinals 2024 MLB Draft Review

Draft Theme: Players who control the zone

All three of the Cardinals’ first selections stand out for their ability to control the zone. That’s so whether you’re talking about hitters, like SS JJ Wetherholt and C Ryan Campos, both of whom walked more often than they struck out this spring, or about a pitcher like RHP Brian Holiday, who dotted up the strike zone on the mound and posted a miniscule 4.2% walk rate. Later picks shared these traits. Eleventh round SS Jon Jon Gazdar struck out just 7.6% of the time this spring, 18th round SS Christian Martin has more walks than strikeouts in his college career and 14th round RHP Mason Burns posted a 31.1% strikeout rate and 7.8% walk rate this spring.

Most Interesting Day 2 Pick: RHP Brian Holiday, 3rd round

Holiday is a short righthander with a 5-foot-11, 200-pound frame but standout strike-throwing ability and competitiveness. Before pitching for Oklahoma State, Holiday helped pitch Central Florida JC to a 2023 national championship, where he was named the tournament’s most outstanding pitcher. Holiday shoved in his first season with Oklahoma State in 2024 and posted a 2.95 ERA over 113 innings and 16 starts with a 28.6% strikeout rate and 4.2% walk rate that was the best mark among Big 12 starters. Holiday doesn’t have big-time stuff, but makes the most of what he has. He sits in the 90-93 mph range with his fastball and touches 95, though his lower release height and flat approach angle help the pitch play up. His best swing-and-miss pitch this spring was a low-80s slider, but he also has confidence in a mid-70s curveball and low-80s changeup. Holiday threw his fastball and slider for strikes more than 70% of the time this spring and he received plus grades both for his pitchability and competitive makeup on the mound. It might be difficult to project much more velocity coming for Holiday, but he could have the pitch mix and command to compete as a backend starter.

Most Interesting Day 3 Pick: SS Jon Jon Gazdar, 11th round

Gazdar is a 5-foot-10, 177-pound shortstop who stands out for his excellent contact skills. He struck out at just a 7.6% clip in his 2023 season with Austin Peay and then had only five strikeouts in 19 games with Hyannis in the Cape Cod League the following summer. He’s a smaller righthanded hitter who isn’t likely to hit for much power, though he can add value as a defender at multiple positions. He plays shortstop for Austin Peay but might be best at second base on the infield given his arm strength and should be able to play all over the outfield as well.