The St. Louis Cardinals prospects went 2-2 on Thursday night. Jonathan Rodriguez and Bruce Caldwell homered. Caldwell fell a double short of the cycle. Harrison Bader, Carson Kelly and Paul DeJong made their Springfield debuts.
Triple-A: Colorado Springs 4 - Memphis 3
- Jacob Wilson (3B): 2-3, R, 2B, BB
- Anthony Garcia (LF): 1-3, R, K
- Jonathan Rodriguez (1B): 1-3, R, HR, 3 RBI, K
- Charlie Tilson (CF): 0-4, 2 K
- Mike Ohlman (C): 1-4, 2 K
- Patrick Wisdom (PH): 0-1, K
- Deck McGuire (SP): 5.1 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 4 K
- Sam Tuivailala (RP): 1 IP, 1 R, 1 BB, 2 K
Double-A: Springfield 3 - San Antonio 1
- Harrison Bader (CF): 2-4, CS
- Paul DeJong (3B): 1-4, 2B, 2 K
- Carson Kelly (C): 0-4, K
- Bruce Caldwell (2B): 3-3, R, 3B, HR, 3 RBI, BB
- Mike Mayers (SP): 7 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 K
A Advanced: Palm Beach 5 - Charlotte 3
- Oscar Mercado (SS): 2-4, R, 2 RBI, SB, 2 CS
- Casey Grayson (1B): 1-4, RBI
- Blake Drake (CF): 1-3, R, RBI, K
- Jack Flaherty (SP): 5 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 6 K 1 HR
- Rowan Wick (RP): 1 IP, 1 H, K
Class A: Burlington 3 - Peoria 2
- Edmundo Sosa (SS): 0-5, 3 K
- Magneuris Sierra (CF): 0-4, K
- Leobaldo Pina (3B): 0-1, 3 BB
- Jake Woodford (SP): 6 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 2 K
With all of the Cardinals prospects assigned and the minor league season underway, I'd like to take a look at the rosters of all of the organization's full-season league affiliates. First up is the Memphis Redbirds.
Infielders and Catchers
Mike Ohlman is joined by Alberto Rosario to make up the Redbirds' catching tandem. Ohlman had a bounce back season in the Texas League and was rewarded with a promotion to Memphis. He is on the 40 man roster, so we may see him in St. Louis if the Cardinals find themselves shorthanded.
The infield is a mix of organization soldiers with a couple of utility infield candidates, and a prospect mixed in. Shortstops Alex Mejia and Matt Williams and first baseman Jonathan Rodriguez have all been in the system for a long time and have been steadily climbing up the ladder. Dean Anna and Jacob Wilson are familiar faces from last year's Memphis roster, best case for both this season is likely a cup of coffee in St. Louis. A red-hot June and July helped Patrick Wisdom reclaim his prospect status last season, but he cooled off as the season wore on, and disappointed in the Arizona Fall League. This is his Memphis debut.
Outfielders
Nick Martini is a long-time Cards minor leaguer who can handle all three outfield positions. Carlos Peguero was a non-roster invitee this spring. The 29 year old is confined to the corners and has a ton of raw power, but a greater amount of swing and miss. Anthony Garcia has been in the system since 2009, and was all but written off as a prospect before having a big season at AA and AAA last year. Charlie Tilson has slowly but surely moved up the organizational ladder, he set career bests in K% and stolen bases last year in Springield. Tilson and Garcia have the best chance to make an impact on the big league roster, but the St. Louis outfield is extremely crowded at the moment, and they will have a chance to show the progress they made last year was for real.
Pitchers
Memphis rotation was full of big league depth last season, but injuries to Marco Gonzales and Tim Cooney and a promotion to the big-league bullpen for Tyler Lyons have gutted it. Consequently, there aren't a lot of names most prospect watchers will recognize, Arturo Reyes will get his second crack at Memphis, and Thomas Lee who has bounced between the rotation and the bullpen during his time in the Cards system are the only inhouse options. They'll be joined by minor league journeymen J.C. Sulbaran and Jeremy Hefner as well as folk hero Deck McGuire. The look of this rotation could change drastically if and when Marco Gonzales and Tim Cooney return and once Alex Reyes comes back from his suspension.
The bullpen is headlined by Sam Tuivailala, Miguel Socolovich and Mitch Harris who all appeared in St. Louis last year. Tuivailala will hopefully find himself pitching in the late innings in St. Louis at some point. Harris will begin the season on the DL. Lefty Dean Kiekhefer has the best shot to end up in St. Louis out of the rest of the bullpen arms.