26 Cardinals Prospect Storylines to Watch in 2026: Part 2
Credit: MLB.com
14. What will the role of the 2025 drafted pitchers be?
The role of some of the Cardinals 2025 draftees will be an interesting question for me, as they drafted a lot of pitchers who I think have the arsenals to start in the minor leagues, but between the draftees and other players already in the organization, spots will be limited for who actually gets to start. Liam Doyle, Tanner Franklin, Cade Crossland, and Ethan Young should all be locked in as starters. They all have both the pitch mix and the draft pedigree to get the chance to do so. After that, we will see who gets what role. Payton Graham should start if totally healthy, but with his recovery from Tommy John, I could see them moving him into a relief role for at least his first pro season. 10th-rounder Ty Van Dyke started games for Palm Beach down the stretch, but with the number of starters looking for chances, he could get put in a bullpen role next season. Similarly, 12th-rounder Kaden Echeman has the arsenal to start, with a good fastball and a couple of good off-speed pitches, but may be put in a long relief role because of a lack of spots.
15. Does anyone get an extension?
This seems like a storyline every year, but with the Cardinals getting a lot of money off the books from the Contreras and Gray deals, the Cardinals could look to lock up some of the younger talent to long-term extensions. The first Cardinal that I expect to get an extension isn’t a player, but Oli Marmol, who I expect to get an extension before or during spring training, similar to the way he did before the 2024 season. On the player side, four main names stand out to me as potential extension candidates: Masyn Winn, Alec Burleson, Ivan Herrera, and JJ Wetherholt. Masyn Winn and Alec Burleson feel like the most likely to me, with Winn’s defense giving him a really high floor, and Burleson being a proven hitter with a defensive home at 1B after the trade of Contreras. Herrera could be a quick extension candidate if he proves to be at least average behind the plate after his elbow surgery, and the Cardinals could jump on a JJ Wetherholt extension early to make sure he doesn’t get out of their price range, similar to Jackson Chourio for the Brewers.
16. How does the Opening Day bullpen shake out?
Similar to many positions on the team, the bullpen will be up for competition in 2026, with a lot of names in contention for spots on the Opening Day roster. Of the names locked into spots, I would say JoJo Romero, Matt Svanson, Riley O’Brien, and Matt Pushard, so that leaves a lot of players for the last four spots in the bullpen. Gordon Graceffo and the two players who likely don’t make the rotation will be frontrunners for three of the spots, while other names such as Andre Granillo, Nick Raquet, Chris Roycroft, Ryan Fernandez, Tink Hence, and Justin Bruihl will be players on the 40-man in contention for a bullpen spot. Of players not on the 40-man, Jared Shuster and Scott Blewett were both signed to minor league deals and should have a shot if they have very strong springs. Gerson Moreno had a strong campaign in AAA last season and has impressed in LIDOM this winter, and could be a dark horse to win a spot. From the prospect ranks, Luis Gastelum could be the one to make a surprise jump, as he is the type of prospect who could make himself undeniable in spring with big performances.
17. How does Dalton Hurd shape the Cardinals' minor league hitting philosophy?
The youth movement not only continues on the field but also with the coaching staff, as the Cardinals have trusted 30-year-old Dalton Hurd to be their new Director of Hitting at the minor league levels. Hurd has experience in both the Giants and Orioles systems, most recently being a minor league hitting coordinator with the O’s last year. When I was breaking down where the Cardinals system ranked in my October article, I mentioned that even with a few breakouts on the hitting side in the minor leagues, the system as a whole didn’t move up in most statistical categories. That was in contrast to the pitching side of the organization, which made massive statistical progress in 2025. The Cardinals hired Matt Pierpont before the 2025 season, and that hire paid dividends almost immediately. We will see if the hire of Dalton Hurd does the same on the hitting side in 2026.
18. Who is the breakout hitter of the year?
Last season, the Cardinals had multiple breakout hitters, including Joshua Baez, Deniel Ortiz, and Rainiel Rodriguez. In 2026, we could see even more breakouts under the new hitting development system led by the aforementioned Dalton Hurd. I am not going to go into much detail in this section because I’ll likely post a potential breakouts or hitters-to-watch article in the near future, but some names that I am watching who could take a step offensively in 2026 include outfielder Zach Levenson, infielder Jesus Baez, and infielder Sebastian Dos Santos. All three had decent to strong 2025 seasons, with obvious ability to take their games to the next level.
19. Who is the breakout pitcher of the year?
Similar to the hitters, the Cardinals had multiple breakout pitchers in 2025 under the new-look pitching side of development. Braden Davis was the most impressive in my opinion, striking out 153 batters in 110.1 innings, which was the highest K% of any starter in the system. Brycen Mautz broke out this season at Springfield, posting a 2.98 ERA with a top-10 K% in the system after struggling to start his minor league career. Like the hitters, I will likely do an article on potential breakout pitchers as we get closer to the end of spring training, but some names to watch for 2026 include Brandon Clarke, Jacob Odle, Frank Elissalt, Andrew Dutkanych, Branneli Franco, and newcomers Ethan Young, Payton Graham, and Cade Crossland. All of these pitchers have good stuff and have the chance to jump up on top-30 lists like Davis and Mautz did this season.
20. How will the Cardinals approach the draft?
Unfortunately, the Cardinals didn’t have luck this year in the draft lottery, dropping from the projected 8th overall pick by odds to the 13th pick in the draft. On the other side, the Cardinals were one of the few teams eligible for a Competitive Round-A pick, which will slot in at number 32 or 33 in this year's draft. Add to this the 50th and the 85th picks in the second and third rounds, and the Cardinals once again have the ability to add significant top-end talent into their system in 2026. Last year, they chose Liam Doyle, Ryan Mitchell, Tanner Franklin, and Jack Gurevitch inside the top 100. The Cardinals set a trend of selecting great fastballs in last year's draft, and I’m interested to see if that trend continues, and to see how the hitting side continues to evolve with new people on the development side in the fold.
Update: I wrote that top section before the Brendan Donovan trade, in which the Cardinals acquired two more top-86 overall picks from the Mariners and Rays, making it six total. I believe that makes this the most important draft in Cardinals history. A few good picks this year could change the direction of the franchise substantially.
21. How will the Cardinals' new international class perform?
The Cardinals signed multiple top-50 players in the 2026 International class, headlined by $2.3 million signee Emanuel Luna, who was the #8 prospect according to Pipeline and #10 according to Baseball America, and is known for his power/speed combination. Carlos “Antonio” Carrion, an ultra-athletic switch-hitting shortstop, was the second-highest-paid player at a $1.1 million signing bonus. The highest-paid pitcher in the class was Rafeli Moronta ($450,000), who is a 6’4” pitcher who sits in the low 90s and has played in PG tournaments in Florida during his youth. Other names who have potential include catcher Sebastian Rojas and outfielders Jhon Franganten and Christopher Vargas. If you want to read more about all 12 of the Cardinals’ international signings, check out my article here.
22. Is the changeup/splitter revolution taking hold in St. Louis?
If you have followed me for about the last year, the Cardinals have drafted or developed a plethora of players with quality changeups over the past couple of years in the minors, with names like Luis Gastelum, Quinn Mathews, Braden Davis, Cade Crossland, Liam Doyle, Tink Hence, Mason Molina, and, most recently, Darlin Saladin all having above-average changeups. One player who made a major jump with a changeup in 2025 was Tekoah Roby, who started throwing a kick-change to lefties to great success. This changeup craze seems to be taking hold with the major league pitchers now, as at Winter Warm Up in St. Louis, Andre Pallante, Gordon Graceffo, Kyle Leahy, Richard Fitts, and Andre Granillo were all either adding or working on a changeup, with the “kick-change” being a buzzword of the weekend. In a recent Derrick Goold article, newly acquired Blake Aita mentioned that he has added a splitter to his arsenal. The changeup craze seems to be hitting the Cardinals now. It is time to see if it works.
23. How will the Cardinals’ TV situation look for 2026 and beyond?
I am writing this before we know the Cardinals' TV home in 2026, but Main Street Sports Group, which is the parent company that owns FanDuel Sports TV, missed a payment to the Cardinals in December, causing the Cardinals and nine other MLB teams to opt out of their contract with the company in early January. The Cardinals now have the option to either return on a likely reduced deal to FanDuel or move to MLB-produced broadcasts. Either way, the Cardinals will likely be losing significant TV revenue not only for the 2026 season, but beyond. Seeing if the Cardinals can find some stability in this area will not only be a storyline for 2026 but for the years to come, as MLB’s distribution model changes and evolves.
Update: The Cardinals have decided to move their production over to MLB in-house production, with the base direct-to-consumer price being $100 a year, though we don’t know what cable providers the channel will be on yet. This marks a significant financial change for the Cardinals, as they are expected to lose about $20 million by going from Main Street Sports (which is going bankrupt) to MLB, which runs on a model where teams get money based on how many subscriptions are sold.
24. Who will be the Opening Day starter?
With the Cardinals trading away Sonny Gray, the Opening Day starter role is up for grabs, with three main pitchers being in contention. Matthew Liberatore and Dustin May seem to be the frontrunners for the position, as Dustin May is the most veteran pitcher on the staff and seems like a logical choice for the Opening Day start, but Liberatore proved himself as a solid MLB starter in 2025 and, with the Cardinals pushing forward with the rebuild, it could be more symbolic to give him the Opening Day start. The third longshot in my mind is Michael McGreevy, who has all of 91 days on the big league roster under his belt, but his poise and consistency on the mound are impressive and beyond his years, and Oli could give him the surprise nod if he has an impressive spring training. Other names like Dobbins, Fitts, and Leahy would have to really impress during spring training to get a shot at Opening Day.
25. How present will Yadier Molina actually be?
Announced at the end of January, Yadier Molina has been hired by the St. Louis Cardinals as a special assistant to Chaim Bloom, with the plan for him to help the club’s catching and game-planning program with appearances both in spring training and during the regular season. The big question for me is how much Molina will actually be a part of the organization. If you remember back to the first time Molina was announced as a special assistant to John Mozeliak, the role didn’t materialize into much, and Molina wasn’t very present. Molina did make a couple of appearances at the end of 2025, which makes me optimistic that he may take a bit more responsibility this time around, though his managing of Team Puerto Rico in the World Baseball Classic makes me think it will be difficult to see him for any substantial time during spring training. I’m just hopeful that he is more present this time around.
26. Do any Cardinals players shine in the WBC?
The Cardinals are sending 10 players to the WBC, including major leaguers Riley O’Brien (Korea), Ivan Herrera (Panama), Thomas Saggese (Italy), and Gordon Graceffo (Italy), as well as minor leaguers Leonardo Bernal (Panama), Bryan Torres (Puerto Rico), Luis Gastelum (Mexico), Matt Koperniak (U.K.), Noah Mendlinger (Israel), and Zach Levenson (Israel). My pick for someone to shine this WBC has to be Luis Gastelum as a part of Team Mexico, as he will face both the U.S. and Italy in Pool B, where he will face some of the best competition in the tournament. I think that both Ivan Herrera and Leonardo Bernal have a chance to lift Panama out of what is an easier Pool A, with a weaker Puerto Rico, Canada, and Cuba being the main three contenders there. I also wouldn’t be surprised to see Bryan Torres get extended run for Yadier Molina’s Team Puerto Rico in his quest to potentially make the Cardinals’ 26-man roster coming out of spring.
