Beyond an ahead-of-schedule performance from the Cardinals at the big league level in 2026, St. Louis has been seeing flashes of the future with big power in the system.
And one of the most notable ones happened Sunday at Double-A Springfield. Rainiel Rodriguez (STL No. 1) and Jesús Báez (STL No. 15) swatted back-to-back homers twice in an 11-4 victory over Arkansas at Dickey-Stephens Park.
But that's only part of the story, because Báez had four homers on the day -- one in the completion of a suspended game, a 4-2 win, and another in the Game 2 for his first career three-homer outing.
COMPLETE CARDINALS PROSPECT COVERAGE
In the regularly scheduled game, the duo batting second and third in the Cardinals order first launched consecutive solo shots in the fourth inning against Adam Leverett (Mariners). Rodriguez, MLB's No. 18 prospect, skied a homer to left field against the right-hander, and five pitches later, Báez did the same.
It was like déjà vu all over again in the sixth as both prospects took Leverett deep to left. It was the 17th Double-A homer for Rodriguez, who also plated a run with a sacrifice fly in the seventh.
But Báez wasn't done yet, because in the ninth, he launched a three-run homer, his 20th at Double-A and 34th of the season, off right-hander Conor Larkin. The 21-year-old's long ball total for this season already outpaces the previous career high he set last year by 20.
Rodriguez already has put himself in rarified air for a teenager at Double-A, long considered the hardest level for prospects to make adjustments to in the Minors. But that's nothing new for Rodriguez, who has hit everywhere since turning pro. He started his career by posting a 1.145 OPS over 41 games in the Rookie-level Dominican Summer League in 2024. He’s posted an OPS north of .950 in each of his first two full seasons stateside and has hit over .300 thus far between High-A Peoria and Springfield this year.
Báez was promoted from Peoria after mashing 14 homers in 54 games to start 2026. In his first full season in the St. Louis system after joining the organization last summer in the Ryan Helsley trade with the Mets, Báez's 55-grade power tool has ignited in his age-21 campaign. His massive day pushed him into the lead for homers among MiLB middle infielders. He's tied for the Cardinals' long ball lead with Joshua Báez (STL No. 3/MLB No. 59) while leading the org in RBIs (91) and standing second in slugging (.569) and OPS (.901).
The Springfield slugfest, of course, followed the electric MLB debut of Joshua Báez, who homered three times at Wrigley Field for St. Louis on Aug. 15. Like his organizational namesake, Báez also had a four-homer day – all in the same game – on June 16, the emotional third anniversary of his father’s passing.