With a busy offseason on the trade market and some nice swings in last year's Draft, the Cardinals have built their farm system into something approaching the ideal talent-rich pipeline rebuilding organizations crave. But that's only one part of the job done. Now they have to develop this group into productive Major Leaguers.
Of the Cardinals' Top 30 prospects -- as released by MLB Pipeline on Tuesday -- 12 have arrived in the organization since last July, either in trades or via the Draft. Among them are first-rounder Liam Doyle -- a left-hander with massive upside thanks to his plus-plus fastball -- and right-hander Jurrangelo Cijntje, a former switch-pitcher acquired from the Mariners in the Brendan Donovan swap who could take off now that he's focused on pitching from his most dominant side.
There are some north stars, though, when it comes to how that development can occur in Chaim Bloom's first season as president of baseball operations.
Top prospect JJ Wetherholt became a top-five global talent with a near-plus-plus hit tool and above-average power, and he's slated to be St. Louis' Opening Day second baseman in just his second full season. Outfielder Joshua Baez went from a non-Top-30 prospect with contact issues to one of only two 20/50 players in the Minors, MLB's No. 1 overall Konnor Griffin (Pirates) being the other.
This is also a group deep in catchers with backstops Rainiel Rodriguez, Leonardo Bernal and Jimmy Crooks taking up three of the top eight spots on the Top 30. Rodriguez has the most power potential in the system already at 19, while Bernal and Crooks have strong defensive reputations in the upper Minors. For a group that would love to find a long-time solution behind the plate à la franchise legend Yadier Molina, it will have more than a few bites at that apple in the years to come.
COMPLETE CARDINALS PROSPECT COVERAGE
Here's a look at the Cardinals' top prospects:
1. JJ Wetherholt, INF (MLB No. 5)
2. Liam Doyle, LHP (MLB No. 34)
3. Rainiel Rodriguez, C (MLB No. 37)
4. Joshua Baez, OF (MLB No. 87)
5. Jurrangelo Cijntje, RHP (MLB No. 91)
Complete Top 30 list »
Biggest jump/fall
Here are the players whose ranks changed the most from the 2025 preseason list to the 2026 preseason list:
Jump: Joshua Baez, OF (2025: NR | 2026: 4)
You'll hear a lot of people -- both fans and those around the industry -- say the Cardinals will be trying to develop their next Baez after last year's breakout. The 6-foot-3 outfielder always had talent by way of his massive power potential but had trouble making enough contact to show it off routinely in games. He worked to become more streamlined in his movements in the box and took off in his age-22 season, hitting .287/.384/.500 with 20 homers and 54 steals in 117 games between High-A Peoria and Double-A Springfield. More importantly, he struck out in only 20.6 percent of his plate appearances, down from 35.5 percent in 2024. Baez jumped into the Top 100 for the first time and earned a 40-man roster spot in the offseason.
Fall: Chase Davis, OF (2025: 10 | 2026: NR)
The 2024 21st overall pick has been searching for a consistent stroke during his time in pro ball, and that will continue entering his third full season. Davis had whiff rates above 47 percent against sliders, changeups and curveballs with Double-A Springfield last season, leading to a 29.6 percent strikeout rate. He also put the ball on the ground 48.1 percent of the time, which hurt his ability to get his impressive raw power into games. The former Arizona star got the bulk of his work in center field in 2025, but he's likely headed for a corner, where he'll need the bat to come around to break back into such a deep Top 30.
More from MLB Pipeline:
• Top 100 prospects | Stats | Video | Podcast | Complete coverage
Best tools
Players are graded on a 20-80 scouting scale for future tools -- 20-30 is well below average, 40 is below average, 50 is average, 60 is plus and 70-80 is well above average. Players in parentheses have the same grade.
Hit: 65 -- JJ Wetherholt
Power: 65 -- Rainiel Rodriguez
Run: 60 -- Tai Peete (Yairo Padilla, Nathan Church)
Arm: 60 -- Leonardo Bernal (Joshua Baez, Jimmy Crooks, Padilla, Peete, Jesus Baez, Church)
Defense: 65 -- Church
Fastball: 70 -- Liam Doyle (Tanner Franklin)
Curveball: 60 -- Tekoah Roby
Slider: 70 -- Brandon Clarke
Changeup: 70 -- Luis Gastelum (Tink Hence)
Control: 55 -- Roby (Gastelum)
How they were built
Draft: 16 | International: 7 | Trade: 7
Breakdown by ETA
2026: 11 | 2027: 9 | 2028: 7 | 2029: 2 | 2031: 1
Breakdown by position
C: 3 | 1B: 2 | 3B: 1 | SS: 3 | OF: 5 | RHP: 8 | LHP: 8