Want Swing-and-Miss? Look No Further Than the Beach Birds
Credit: Brennan Erlandsen
After winning eight straight, Palm Beach is now 9-2 and sits atop the Florida State League, and that has been thanks to an electric pitching staff that has posted a 2.58 ERA with 125 strikeouts and a .193 batting average against in their first 11 games. With #24 Cade Crossland being their only Top 30 pitching prospect according to MLB Pipeline, most casual fans might assume that Palm Beach has one of the weaker pitching staffs in the system, often overshadowed by the higher levels, but that couldn’t be further from the truth, as the Beach Birds boast some of the most talented and underrated arms in the system, including a plethora from the 2025 draft.
RHP Jacob Odle
One of the pitchers I predicted to break out this season, Odle has shown a significant step forward in his second year post-Tommy John, with his fastball going from 94.2 mph last season to 97.1, topping out at 99.4 mph so far in his first couple of appearances in 2026. Mix that with better control through his first two appearances (17.9% → 8.3% BB rate), and Odle looks primed to have a great season. That showed up in his second appearance on Sunday, when he went 4 innings in relief of rehabber Pete Hansen, striking out 6 batters and giving up only a single hit with no walks. Combine the improved fastball velocity with a plus slider, which has averaged in the high 80s this season with a 50% whiff rate, and a great curveball, which had a whiff rate of 68% last season, and Odle’s arsenal looks especially impressive. Working on a suitable changeup was a key for Odle this offseason, and the pitch looks improved metrically so far in 2026. It’s not a long shot to say that Odle has one of the best arsenals in the system, and he could easily find his way onto Top 30 lists very soon if this stuff holds later into the season.
RHP Ty Van Dyke
The reigning FSL Pitcher of the Week, Van Dyke went five and two-thirds innings on Wednesday, giving up three hits and striking out six. A 10th-round pick out of Stetson, Van Dyke is making the transition from reliever to starter on the back of a great sweeper, which he threw 39% of the time in his first start, generating a 50% whiff rate. He combines the low-80s sweeper with a 93-94 mph fastball, which plays up due to Van Dyke’s lower slot and ability to locate the pitch. He also mixes in a cutter, sinker, and changeup. After being one of the only pitchers to pitch last season after getting drafted, Van Dyke has posted a 1.83 ERA through his first six starts in the system with 1.4 BB/9. While he might not have the best pitches from a pure stuff standpoint in this article, Van Dyke has above-average command, which should carry him through the lower minor leagues as a starter. If the stuff ticks up even more as he gets used to the new role, he could be a solid piece for the Cardinals in the future.
RHP Jake Shelagowski
The Cardinals’ 13th-round pick in the 2025 draft out of Division II Saginaw Valley State University, little was known about Shelagowski from a pitch standpoint before his debut at Palm Beach, but it became clear almost instantly why the Cardinals took the 6’3” righty. First, Shelagowski generates elite extension from his 6’3” frame, getting over 7.0 feet of extension on both his fastball and slider, his two primary pitches. Combine that elite extension with a fastball that averages around 95-96 mph and has the ability to touch 100. Off the fastball, Shelagowski primarily features a sharp mid-80s slider, which grades out well metrically and has gotten a 57% whiff rate so far this year. Similar to many of the exciting pitchers in the system, the Cardinals are seeing what Shelagowski can do over a larger amount of innings, with Shelagowski picking up his first pro win vs. Bradenton on Thursday, where he threw 4 perfect innings with 5 strikeouts. With the relative mystery that Shelagowski was coming into the year, it has been exciting to see some fun characteristics from him so far.
RHP Alex Breckheimer
One of the few pitchers who debuted last year at Palm Beach, Breckheimer has continued to show off his elite fastball, which carried him throughout college. In his first appearance on Opening Night, Breckheimer went 3 innings, striking out 6 with 13 whiffs against the St. Lucie Mets, with his fastball averaging 94 mph and topping 99 mph with great movement from a low release height, all of which is why the pitch has generated a 30% whiff rate so far this season. The fastball plays exceptionally well up in the zone vs. Low-A competition, consistently getting chase and swing-and-miss.
What makes me excited about Breckheimer is the fact that there is still a lot of growth to be seen from the 22-year-old. First, the fastball is inconsistent velocity-wise, sitting anywhere from 93-99 mph so far in his pro career. If he can get his mechanics more in sync and be throwing mid-to-high 90s consistently, the fastball could take another jump from good into the elite tier. The second place I could see substantial improvement is in the secondary offerings. Right now, Breckheimer relies on his heater over 65.9% of the time, deploying a plethora of other pitches that he doesn’t use more than around 10% of the time. The slider and curveball seem to be the two he relies on most, using them 10.3% of the time each in his first appearance, with the slider producing more than the curveball, though the curveball has averaged -13.9 inches of IVB and could become the better offspeed offering if he shows an ability to locate the pitch better. Breckheimer has already shown dominant appearances, and I don’t think he is anywhere near his peak yet, which is really encouraging for the future.
The Changeup Boys — Cade Crossland and Jack Martinez
Cade Crossland was known at Oklahoma for his changeup, which was one of the major reasons the Cardinals drafted him in the fourth round of the 2025 draft, and that success has continued into his first couple of pro outings, with his changeup producing a 44.4% whiff rate and a .185 expected batting average through his first two starts. That includes a second start in which he threw 3.2 innings with 7 strikeouts and a 46% whiff rate. Crossland, similar to fellow Oklahoma lefty Braden Davis, has some major strides to make in terms of his command, but his sinker, changeup, and good curveball (57% whiff rate in 12% usage) give Crossland a solid base for future success.
Jack Martinez was acquired by the Cardinals in the trade that sent Nolan Arenado to the Arizona Diamondbacks, and Martinez is already showing the intriguing characteristics that made him a target for the Cardinals. The first thing you will notice when watching Martinez pitch is his unconventional falling-down motion. While this looks strange, it helps him in two ways. First, it allows him to generate an elite amount of extension, near 7 feet, which helps his low-90s heater play up, and this extension, combined with the strange motion, allows Martinez to get to an extremely low 5.1-foot release height, which puts him well below average. Similar to Crossland, Martinez’s calling card is his low-80s changeup, which has a 46.7% whiff rate so far this season while being used 34.4% of the time through his first couple of starts. Combine this with a low-90s fastball with very good ride and a solid low-80s slider, which he relies on the most (40.8% usage), and Martinez has an interesting profile of solid stuff mixed with an unorthodox delivery that could lead him to future success.
Kaden Echeman and Patrick Galle
Finishing this article up with a couple of relievers, Echeman was the Cardinals’ 12th-round pick out of Northern Kentucky University, known for plus fastball movement and a solid curveball. That is exactly what Echeman has shown in his relief outings so far, featuring a low-90s fastball with up to 19 inches of IVB and a hammer curveball that sits in the low 80s with an excellent -14.8 inches of induced vertical break, producing a 50% whiff rate through his first three appearances. If Echeman can add a bit more velocity while keeping his elite fastball movement profile, he could profile as a solid reliever for the Cardinals in the future.
Patrick Galle was acquired this past week as the player to be named later in the Sonny Gray deal, and almost immediately he showed why the Cardinals wanted him. So far through his first two appearances, Galle has struck out 5 of the 6 outs that he has recorded. He features a high-90s fastball touching 100 mph from a steep, over-the-top arm slot, which allows him to produce 19 inches of IVB on the pitch. So far this season, he’s used the offering 53.8% of the time, producing a 45.5% whiff rate. His main secondary offering is a high-80s cutter, which has produced a 66.7% whiff rate in a small sample size. He also has flashed a plus movement changeup and a slider. The main question with Galle will be: can he throw strikes? As this is something he has yet to do at any level, and so far this season he has walked three batters in four innings with Palm Beach.
