St. Louis Cardinals: Early Spring Returns on Pitching

It’s early in the year. Very early. Too early. But, nevertheless, the St. Louis Cardinals are already receiving intriguing results from their young pitchers.

Coming into Spring Training, the only given on the St. Louis Cardinals’ pitching staff was that Jack Flaherty would start on Opening Day. Besides that, questions abound. Who will close? Who handles the 7th and 8th? Can Carlos Martinez and Adam Wainwright stay healthy?

Other questions present themselves in terms of production. Can Miles Mikolas return to his 2018 form? Can Dakota Hudson cut down the walks? In a worst-case scenario, and all of these questions come out negative, who steps up and fills these roles and gives the St. Louis Cardinals much needed innings.

Already, the pitching staff has dealt with injuries to Mikolas and Andrew Miller, and there will no doubt be more injuries to deal with before spring training ends. Although it’s still very early in spring, there have been a handful of pitchers who have stood out to me while watching games.

Junior Fernandez

Fernandez signed with the Cardinals as an international free agent out of the Dominican Republic in 2014, for $400,000. Originally brought in as a starter, Fernandez transitioned to the bullpen before the 2019 season to help prevent injuries and maximize his effectiveness.

Fernandez broke out in a big way after his bullpen transition. Overall, he had a 1.52 ERA in 65 innings across three minor league levels. He also struck out 80 and allowed only a .185 BAA. The most eye-popping part of his 2019 was that his best numbers came in AAA Memphis, which is in the notoriously hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League.

Fernandez made his Major League debut at the tail end of 2019. While he walked 6 batters in 11.2 innings, he also only gave up 9 hits which amounted to a 1.26 ERA. His only mistakes were allowing two home runs, which ballooned his Major League ERA to 5.40.

This spring, however, Fernandez has looked sharp and has pitched quite well in his four innings. He has also struck out 8 and not allowed a run. What a way to start the spring for the big league roster hopeful.

Johan Oviedo

There aren’t any pictures of Oviedo available to us, so enjoy Kolten Wong’s slick cleats but Oviedo signed with the Cardinals out of Cuba in 2016. The Cuban right-hander boasts a tall, lanky, projectable frame at 6’6″ 210lbs. Oviedo has a good fastball that sits 92-94 mph consistently and can touch 97. His other two offerings project to be major league average, with his changeup being a potentially plus pitch

Oviedo had a decent year in the Minors last year, putting up a 4.72 ERA in 29 appearances, 28 starts. He threw 146.2 innings and registered 163 strikeouts, which bodes well for future Major League projections. A 1.53 WHIP leaves much to be desired, as does 76 walks.

Thus far in spring, he has allowed 1 run in 3.2 innings, striking out 2 and walking 1. While it’s a very small sample size, a 0.84 WHIP shows a huge improvement over previous results. Oviedo projects to be one of the first few to get the next-man-up call should an injury occur.

Genesis Cabrera

Cabrera is a flamethrowing lefty who made his debut last season. He has electric stuff, a terrifying fastball, and no sense of control. Cabrera was originally signed by the Rays and came to the St. Louis Cardinals in the Tommy Pham trade.

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Although the numbers don’t show it, Cabrera actually showed out well in his first Major League stint, culminating with a spot on the postseason roster. Striking out 19 in 20.1 innings while also walking 11. He mainly pitched out of the bullpen, registering two starts vs 11 bullpen appearances.

Cabrera’s problem has never been lack of stuff. That much is obvious while watching him pitch. His control, however, leaves some to be desired. Thus far into spring, he’s struck out six in 4.0 innings, while also walking two. His WHIP is 1.50, which represents an improvement over his 1.67 mark last year.

I feel like I haven’t stressed this enough. These results are in a VERY small sample size. I’m merely writing on what I’m seeing, and I’ve been seeing good things from Cabrera. In a recent outing, Cabrera threw a curveball to a left-handed batter who dove out of the box. That pitch broke into the strike zone and left the hitter looking silly.

Electric pitches like that make every Genesis Cabrera outing a must-watch.

Zach Thompson

Thompson was the Cardinals’ first pick in the 2019 MLB Draft, going 19th overall. A 6’2″, 225 lb left-hander, Thompson is a very well-balanced prospect. Three of his four pitches grade out as above average, with only his changeup being just decent.

His fastball sits in the low 90s, topping out at 96 mph. A low 80s slider is also a plus pitch. His curveball registers high spin rates, with more break than pure power. His changeup is nothing more than average, but remains very effective as a fourth pitch.

In his pro debut, Thompson pitched threw 15.1 innings, striking out 23 and walking four. 23 strikeouts in 15.1 innings show great strikeout ability and very high upside. His first spring in major league camp has gone quite well, too.

While only pitching in two games, Thompson has struck out two in 2.0 innings. His delivery is smooth and repeatable, and he has been filling the strike zone. In his 2.0 innings, he’s allowed no walks and no hits. I have been very impressed watching Thompson carve up major league hitters.

Matthew Liberatore

Lib’s first outing did not go to plan. While he threw well overall, he was the victim of some tough-luck with squibs and bloops dropping in for hits. Coming over from the Rays in the Jose Martinez trade, Liberatore’s upside is huge.

Drafted in the 1st round in 2018, the left-hander actually grew up playing with Nolan Gorman. The two are close friends and are rooming together this spring. It’s a rather cool story, in all actuality.

In 2019, Liberatore pitched in Class-A with Tampa, throwing 78.1 innings with a 3.10 ERA, while also walking 31. Lib has above-average tools across the board, pointing to his massive potential. He has a four-pitch mix, where all four will chart out as at least above average. His curveball is the best, with the potential to be a dominant major league pitch.

This spring, Liberatore has pitched twice with two polar opposite results. His first outing, like I previously mentioned, was plagued by bad luck. His second outing, however, resulted in a clean inning along with a strikeout. It’s hard to watch this guy pitch and not be excited about what’s to come.

Long story short, there are many reasons to be excited about the future of the St. Louis Cardinal’s pitching staff. The most exciting thing, to me, is the presence of so many talented left-handers in our system.

The Cardinals have not had a consistent left-handed starter since Jaime Garcia, way back in 2016. Now, Austin Gomber, Genesis Cabrera, Matthew Liberatore, and Zach Thompson all are showing the potential of a major league starter.

The youth of this pitching staff will be a strength in the long run, providing depth and energy during the dog days of August. The season can be a tough grind from time to time, and fresh faces help to relieve the boredom in the clubhouse.

Many of the players mentioned in this article will make major league appearances at one point or another in 2020. Some may have the same effect that Giovanny Gallegos had on the 2019 season. These pitchers are the future, and the future is bright.