St. Louis Cardinals: Lane Thomas promoted to Memphis

The St. Louis Cardinals have promoted OF Lane Thomas to Memphis in wake of the Luke Voit trade.

Lane Thomas is a 22 year old outfielder, drafted by the Toronto Blue Jays out of high school in the fifth round of the 2014 draft. The St. Louis Cardinals acquired Thomas in July of 2017 by sending the Blue Jays some international pool money.

So far in 2018, Thomas has been playing with Springfield, hitting .260. His most impressive number, by far, is his 21 homers with the team. That number surpasses his previous season high of eight homers in a season. It is safe to say he has found his power stroke this year.

That is not all he has done. While playing against the Tulsa Drillers, Thomas made a play on defense that even drew kudos from the opposition. He has generally always has a very solid glove in the outfield.

Keep An Eye On

Something to keep an eye on is that the St. Louis Cardinals have promoted an outfielder to replace a first baseman. That could signal more moves coming, if you choose to read into it that way. It is also worth noting that more will be happening to the Memphis roster.

Giovanny Gallegos, who was part of the return for Luke Voit, is going to be reporting to Memphis. That means a roster spot will have to be made in some way. If that was not enough, the other part of the Voit trade is Chasen Shreve will report to St. Louis. That means that a player will need to be sent down as well.

What Does That Mean For Lane Thomas?

It shouldn’t mean anything. He will likely survive through all of that happening. But at worst, it means this could be a short promotion. It looks like all the movement will need to be pitchers and Thomas is not a hurler. It could also mean that some outfielders are going to start seeing some reps at first base.

The only listed first baseman is Rangel Ravelo. However Patrick Wisdom is another guy who can get reps there. That is something to watch.

This is a well deserved promotion for the Lane Thomas. He has earned it, and has been a great addition to the St. Louis Cardinals. As he keeps progressing, the early returns tell me that it was a good use of international pool money.