Cards make strategic moves to shield top prospects from Rule 5 Draft

ST. LOUIS -- Needing space on their roster to protect some of their top Minor League prospects from the Rule 5 Draft coming in December, the Cardinals made a flurry of moves on Thursday, most notably waiving former starting center fielder Michael Siani and outrighting former first-round pick Zack Thompson.

The Cardinals also added infielder Bryan Torres to their 40-player roster, while outrighting left-handed pitchers Anthony Veneziano and Thompson so that they could become Minor League free agents. In addition to waiving Siani -- who was claimed by the Braves -- the Cards waived right-handed reliever Roddery Muñoz, who was claimed by the rival Reds.

The Cardinals have until 5 p.m. CT on Nov. 18 to create roster spaces for Minor Leaguers they want to protect from the Rule 5 Draft. Leonardo Bernal (No. 4 in the Cards' system, per MLB Pipeline), Joshua Baez (No. 11) and Brycen Mautz (No. 21) will assuredly be added to the 40-man roster. Bernal, Baez and Mautz were driving forces on the Double-A Springfield club that won the Texas League title.

Pete Hansen, a third-round pick in 2022, and Max Rajcic, a former Cardinals Minor League Pitcher of the Year, will likely be protected as well. However, the Cards have difficult choices to make about Tekoah Roby (No. 8), Tink Hence (No. 12), Cooper Hjerpe (No. 13) and Sem Robberse (No. 28) -- pitchers who suffered significant arm/shoulder injuries that could spill into the '26 season.

Torres, 28, led all Minor League players with a .441 on base percentage in 2025 with Triple-A Memphis. Also, his .328 batting average ranked eighth among all MiLB players. The second baseman, who hails from Caguas, Puerto Rico, had a .905 OPS in 104 games with Memphis.

Siani played in 124 games with the Cardinals in 2024 -- most of them as the starting center fielder -- but he was beaten out for that job in training camp by Victor Scott II, who was a Gold Glove finalist in 2025. Siani also proved himself to be a brilliant fielder in '24 by ranking fifth in MLB in outs above average (16). However, he hit just .228 in 298 at-bats in '24 and .235 in 17 at-bats this past season.

Thompson, the No. 19 overall pick in 2019, didn’t pitch at all in '25 and spent most of the season on the 60-day injured list. He was twice shut down from throwing when pain persisted in his left shoulder. In 52 career MLB games -- 12 of them starts -- the left-handed Thompson went 6-10 with a 4.50 ERA.

Muñoz and Veneziano briefly worked out of the Cardinals' bullpen in 2025. Muñoz had an 8.18 ERA in nine appearances, while Veneziano had a 4.50 ERA in two outings after coming to the Cards from the Marlins.