Also a chance to finish this list and vote for the 20th prospect
If any of you were around for the comments on Thursday morning, you’ll know how much trouble the last vote ended up being. I tried three polls and an extra post to make sure the bot vote wasn’t overwhelming the voting. It did not work. I removed Won-Bin Cho, the early beneficiary and then it hit Brian Holiday. I added Cho back to the vote and then suddenly, it just stopped. Even with the head start, Honeyman is very clearly the winner of the 19th vote. Here is the list so far.
- JJ Wetherholt, SS
- Quinn Mathews, LHP
- Tink Hence, RHP
- Thomas Saggese, 2B/3B
- Jimmy Crooks III, C
- Michael McGreevy, RHP
- Chase Davis, OF
- Leonardo Bernal, C
- Cooper Hjerpe, LHP
- Tekoah Roby, RHP
- Chen-Wei Lin, RHP
- Gordon Graceffo, RHP
- Sem Robberse, RHP
- Matt Koperniak, OF
- Yairo Padilla, SS
- Darlin Saladin, RHP
- Zack Showalter, RHP
- Raniel Rodriguez, C
- Travis Honeyman, OF
New addition
As I mentioned before, last week I added the winner of the “losers” poll – putting in the players who lost their comparable player poll – from the position player side. And this week, I am adding the pitcher version of that, which just so happens to be Andrew Dutkanych IV, the currently injured pitcher out of Vanderbilt.
Ian Bedell, RHP – 25
Stats (AA): 12 G, 64.2 IP, 29.5 K%, 7.1 BB%, 36 GB%, .265 BABIP, 4.73 ERA/4.59 FIP/3.46 xFIP/3.67 DRA
AAA: 9 G, 43 IP, 16.4 K%, 12.7 BB%, 37.7 GB%, .215 BABIP, 5.02 ERA/7.03 FIP/6.68 xFIP/6.98 DRA
BP: “The stuff is not overpowering but the arsenal is deep, allowing Bedell to turn over a lineup and stick as a starter.” (From June)
Bedell’s start to his pro career involved him getting hurt in his second ever appearance and spending most of the next season rehabbing. So his first proper debut as a pro came at the age of 23 despite being drafted at 20-years-old. Oh yeah and he was also drafted in the COVID year. But after a solid year in AA and a very shaky one in AAA, Bedell is repeating AAA at the age of 25, so he is finally on track.
Won-Bin Cho, OF – 21
LYR: #11
Stats (High A): 107 G, 428 PAs, .227/.307/.305, 8.4 BB%, 31.3 K%, .078 ISO, .343 BABIP, 81 wRC+, 74 DRC+
BP: “Cho profiles favorably in the field, a solid corner outfield defender thanks to above-average speed and adequate reads, but is likely stretched in center field.”
Cho was signed as an amateur free agent out of South Korea at 18-years-old. Things went according to plan in his first two seasons, with above average lines at both the complex league and at Low A. But he hit a very real roadblock in his age 20 season at High A. So now he’ll be repeating at High A at 21, so he’s still well-positioned to bounce back and stay a prospect.
Andrew Dutkanych IV, RHP – 21
LYR: Not in system
Stats (Vanderbilt: 5 G, 30.4 K%, 13 BB%, .250 BABIP, 3.38 ERA/3.76 FIP
BP: When healthy, he sits in the mid-90s with feel for two high-spin breaking balls, so there’s a lot to work for a pro pitching development group when he gets healthy.
Dutkanych last four games in his freshman year when a leg injury knocked him out for the season. And the above stats you see was posted last year before he had to get Tommy John surgery. The good news is he got it in March of 2023, so there’s a decent chance he’ll pitch at some point this year, though I wouldn’t expect more than rehab appearances.
Luis Gastelum, RHP – 23
LYR: Unranked
Stats (Low A): 30 G, 48 IP, 34.5 K%, 5.4 BB%, 41.9 GB%, .359 BABIP, 2.81 ERA/2.47 FIP/2.12 xFIP/2.78 DRA
BP: He’s a 23-year-old relief prospect who “broke out” last season in Low A, so naturally BP hasn’t written a word about him.
Gastelum was signed out of Mexico as a 21-year-old and the Cardinals have kind of slow-played him so far. He was good in the complex league, with an elite K/BB ratio and tons of swing and miss but rarely induced groundballs and had a .396 BABIP against. That was also a problem in the most recent season, but it was the only problem as his groundballs induced were closer to average, and his strikeouts went way up at Low A. He’ll presumably be at High A to start next season.
Michael Helman, 28 – IF/OF
LYR: Not in system
Stats (AAA): 72 G, 314 PAs, .271/.350/.487, 9.2 BB%, 24.2 K%, .217 ISO, .323 BABIP, 116 wRC+, 103 DRC+
BP: Much the same as Koperniak, I don’t know that BP has ever written a word about Helman.
Helman was drafted by the Twins way back in 2018 at 22 – so he was already an old draftee. He made it to High A in his second pro season, but was terrible. After the missing 2020 minor league season, Helman had a good year at High A. The Twins wasted little time promoting him to AAA in 2021, but he was a below average hitter there (slightly). He spent most of the 2023 season injured. He took two different trips to the injured list last year, but also made his MLB debut.
Ixan Henderson, 23 – LHP
LYR: Unranked
Stats (Low A): 16 (11 GS), 73 IP, 26.3 K%, 9 BB%, 47.2 GB%, .261 BABIP, 2.10 ERA/3.02 FIP/3.57 xFIP/3.69 DRA
High A: 6 GS, 31 IP, 19.5 K%, 10.5 BB%, 34.1 GB%, .341 BABIP, 2.90 ERA/4.57 FIP/4.80 xFIP/4.55 DRA
Henderson was drafted in the 8th round of the 2023 draft and was actually one of the few pitching arms to make an appearance the same year he was drafted, albeit for a few relief appearances. In 2024, he made quick work of Low A, though wasn’t able to match those numbers in High A, with a below average K rate and below average BB rate despite the 2.90 ERA.
Sammy Hernandez, 21 – C
LYR: Unranked
Stats (Low A): 350 PAs, .264/.372/.363, 10.9 BB%, 17.1 K%, .098 ISO, .323 BABIP, 118 wRC+, 117 DRC+
High A: 33 PAs, .130/.375/.391, 18.2 BB%, 24.2 K%, .261 ISO, .077 BABIP, 132 wRC+, 100 DRC+
Hernandez was a 14th round draft pick out of high school by the Blue Jays. He barely played in either the 2022 season and was aggressively promoted to Low A, where he wasn’t very good. He was sent back to the complex league and that’s when they traded him to the Cards. He lit up the complex league with the Cards who gave him an additional 10 games in Low A. Last year, he had the year that he had and saw a small amount of games in High A.
Brian Holiday, 22 – RHP
LYR: Not in system
Stats (College): 16 GS, 113 IP, 28.6 K%, 4.2 BB%, .089 WHIP, 2.95 ERA
BP: “Because he’s short—listed at 5-foot-11—and has visual effort in his motion, he’s going to carry a future reliever tag until he doesn’t, but if the Cardinals are truly improving on pitcher development, Holiday has the type of arsenal they should start to see more successful outcomes with.”
Holiday was drafted out of Oklahoma State in the 3rd round and as has been typical, made no appearances last season. Without having any stats or even knowing if he’ll be sent to Low A or High A, it’s difficult to judge Holiday in any way yet. But he’s a control pitcher without flashy stuff in the Michael McGreevy mold.
Jonathan Mejia, 2B/SS – 20
LYR: Unranked
Stats (Complex): 205 PAs, .299/.395/.425, 12.2 BB%, 25.4 K%, .126 ISO, .405 BABIP, 127 wRC+
BP: They have spoken about him, but it is extremely dated (from 2023) and things have changed too much to share.
Mejia was signed in January of the 2022 season at 16-years-old, both turning 17 in April and debuting as a pro that season. He killed it in the DSL, making a name for himself as a legitimate prospect. Then his 2023 season was almost a complete waste as he was bad in Low A and then also bad in the complex league. Last year was a return to form, although he may be destined for 2B instead of a true SS prospect.
Max Rajcic, RHP – 23
LYR: #12
Stats (AA): 25 G, 131 IP, 23.1 K%, 7.7 BB%, 39.2 GB%, .314 BABIP, 4.33 ERA/4.41 FIP/4.03 xFIP/4.59 DRA
BP: “He has a very pretty looking but humpy curveball, though his changeup has actually taken a step forward to claim the title of his best offspeed offering (to go along with various flavors of slider).”
Rajcic was a 6th round draft pick in the 2022 draft and he probably outpitched anyone else in that draft in his initial season. He pitched well enough that the Cardinals only needed 12 starts to promote him to High A. He pitched well enough in High A to get the promotion to AA. Last year, he had a solid season given the run environment, but obviously stayed at AA all year.