St. Louis Cardinals: Several Springfield Cardinals involved in All-Star Night

The Springfield Cardinals, the Double-A affiliate for the St. Louis Cardinals, sent three players to the Texas League All-Star Night in Midland, Texas on Tuesday. The Cardinals had seven players named to the team, second most in the league, but three were promoted and another was listed as unavailable.

Coincidentally, all four of the players that did not participate were pitchers. The St. Louis Cardinals Double-A group started two outfielders in the game, while another came in for two at-bats later in the game.

Pitchers Unavailable

Of the four pitchers, Connor Greene was the first pitcher of the group that was promoted. Greene was drafted in the seventh round by the Toronto Blue Jays in 2013 by the Blue Jays, and was acquired by the Cardinals with Dominic Leone in the Randal Grichuk trade. He is currently the 16th ranked prospect in the St. Louis Cardinals organization, according to MLB.com.

After posting a 4.44 ERA and allowing just a .242 BAA over 11 games (10 starts), Greene was promoted on June 4 to the Memphis Redbirds. He has been used as a reliever so far for the St. Louis Cardinals Triple-A affiliate, allowing just a .219 BAA while recording a 3.60 ERA. His control is a problem though, and he will need to cut down on his 9.9 BB/9 moving forward.

On June 10, not even a week following Greene’s promotion, Chris Ellis got the call-up to the Redbirds. He was drafted by the Angels in 2013, and moved around a bit before coming to the Cardinals in the trade that sent Jaime Garcia to Atlanta.

Ellis was used both as a starter and as a reliever, and put up a 4.19 ERA over 15 games (seven starts). While there seems to be room for improvement there, he has shown the ability to control hitters with a .228 BAA and just 2.71 BB/9. In Triple-A, Ellis has continued with similar efficiency to the tune of a 3.00 ERA and 1.07 WHIP over three starts with the Redbirds.

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Jake Woodford was the freshest of the prospect call-ups, only getting his promotion on June 24, just two days before the game. He was drafted by the Cardinals in 2015 in the competitive balance round, a group of five picks determined by a lottery drawing of the ten clubs with the smallest market or the lowest revenue.

Woodford had the least attractive stats of the three with a 5.09 ERA,1.63 WHIP, and a .294 BAA. Despite these numbers, which would be seen by many as struggles, the St. Louis Cardinals organization decided to promote the 21-year old Woodford to Triple-A. He struggled somewhat in his first start, giving up four runs in five innings. Despite this rough patch, his young age makes him the 17th ranked prospect with the St. Louis Cardinals organization.

Connor Jones, the pitcher deemed inactive, was drafted out of Virginia by the Cardinals in the second round of the 2016 draft. He has struggled somewhat since an immaculate seven inning, one-hitter on June 12, but still has a respectable 4.22 ERA over 11 starts. He is right behind Woodford as the 18th ranked prospect in the Cardinals organization.

A Different Looking All-Star Night

Unlike the MLB, the Texas League holds its Home Run Derby and All-Star Games on the same night. The first Springfield Cardinal to participate in the night’s festivities was outfielder Victor Roache, who placed second in the Home Run Derby after making it to the finals with six home runs.

Roache was drafted with the Milwaukee Brewers first round draft pick in 2012, and the Cardinals signed Roache as a free agent on January 31. Roache has paid the Cardinals faith back in dividends leads the Texas League with 16 home runs so far this year, and has a respectable .249 average to boot.

In the All-Star Game immediately following, Roache and outfielder Lane Thomas got the starts representing the Cardinals. Thomas was drafted in 2014 by the Blue Jays and was traded to the Cardinals in 2017. Thomas is among the league leaders in home runs with 13, and is second on Springfield with 12 steals.

The game itself was something you would expect more from a regular game. Each team only scored two runs, and the game was decided with a sudden death home run contest. Thomas went one for four with a double and a strikeout, while Roache went hit-less in two plate appearances.

The final member of the Springfield All-Star cast was Tommy Edman, who came off the bench and also went hit-less in two appearances. Edman is the 21st ranked Cardinals prospect drafted out of Stanford in the sixth round of the 2016 draft. He is slashing .285/.342/.385 and leads Springfield with 14 stolen bases.

The Texas League All-Star nominees and participants for the Springfield Cardinals give fans a look at some under the radar prospects that could defy the odds and become a name that St. Louis Cardinals fans around the world will remember.

Do you think that any of these prospects will make a name for themselves? Do you enjoy the idea of a singular All-Star night or the sudden death home run contest? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.