St. Louis Cardinals: Cardinals 2020 MLB Draft Guide

Cade Cavalli, RHP, Oklahoma

In my opinion, I feel like the Cardinals’ biggest need is RHP depth in the farm system. There are already a few solid young arms but the majority are left-handers. The farm system lacks a stud RHP and it should be something hanging over Mozeliak’s head.

In Jonathan Mayo’s latest mock draft, he had Oklahoma Sooners’ ace, Cade Cavalli, going to St. Louis. Cavalli is an impressive right-hander with a huge 6’4 225 build and a ton of upside.

In 2017, he was drafted by the Atlanta Braves in the 29th round but ultimately decided to attend Oklahoma; and now it looks like that decision is paying off as he will likely be a first-rounder in this years’ draft.

With his size comes easy velocity, where he usually sits at 93-to-95 miles per hour and can top out at about 98 mph. He has an effective repertoire with a nasty curveball as well as a solid power slider. His biggest weakness at the moment issues with command as he walked 35 hitters in 2019 and had his fair share of wild pitches and hit batters.

Cavalli is still sort of new to the position and has only pitched since his sophomore year in high school. He wasn’t even originally going to Oklahoma to be a pitcher, he was going to be an infielder, but switched to the mound after his freshman year.

Cavalli has tremendous upside and has shown a lot of growth as a pitcher over the past couple of years, but his talent comes with a price, which is command issues and a small injury history, where he missed time earlier this season with a stress reaction in his arm which affected his performance in 2020.

Pete Crow-Armstrong, OF, Harvard Westlake (HS)

Though the Cardinals’ OF depth is just fine with guys like Dylan Carlson, Tyler O’Neill, and Jhon Torres; but with there not being much of a high school season due to the COVID-19 pandemic, high schoolers could see a slight bump down draft boards.

Pete Crow-Armstrong is a dynamic OF out of Harvard-Westlake Academy in California. If you are wondering why Harvard-Westlake might sound familiar, it’s because Cardinals Ace Jack Flaherty also went there and was drafted out of HS as well. So, if the Cardinals wanted to reach their hand in the Harvard-Westlake basket again, Pete Crow-Armstrong would be the pick.

The California prospect has been among the top HS position players for about a year now and he brings a lot to the table in regards to his game. He is more of a contact hitter rather than power, but he does show potential as a power hitter and can make “loud contact” on occasion. He also is an elite defensive fielder and scouts have claimed that he is the best defensive OF in this class.

Crow-Armstrong has a solid frame at 6’1, 180 lbs but he will need to put on a little bit of mass once he transitions into professional baseball. When you look at his tools, he might give you Harrison Bader vibes. A very solid athlete with plus speed and fielding ability as well as upside as a hitter with raw power. As well as going hard in the field at all costs.

Overall, Pete Crow-Armstrong has a lot of room to grow but could develop into a very solid MLB player with the right development. He could likely be gone before St. Louis even picks, but if he is there at 21, it might be a risk worth taking.

Casey Martin, SS, Arkansas

Though the Cardinals potentially have their shortstop of the future in 2019 All-Star Paul DeJong, there is very little depth in the middle infield department; with Cardinals No. 21 prospect Mateo Gil being the best shortstop in the entire farm system.

Drafting Casey Martin out of Arkansas would be a big need filler and could potentially take over at shortstop in the future for St. Louis. He has an intriguing power-speed combo which could make scouts fall in love with him since he is a shortstop. He has a solid glove, but there is still room to develop. His biggest weakness though is how raw he is as a pure hitter.

The power is there for Martin as he has hit 28 HR’s during his freshman and sophomore years at Arkansas, but he still needs a lot of growth as a contact hitter. He struck out 64 times as a freshman and 71 times as a sophomore and had 22 Ks as a junior in only 15 games. He needs serious work as a contact hitter and taking better at-bats, but the 30-30 potential is there and it’s hard to ignore.

Martin has played a big role in taking the Arkansas Razorbacks to Omaha for the College World Series in back to back seasons. Including a CWS final, where the Razorbacks were ONE OUT away from clinching a title before the Oregon State Beavers clutched out Game 2 and ended up winning the rubber match the next night, (sound familiar Cardinals fans?).

The Razorback shortstop could be a very solid pick for St. Louis if he can fix his inconsistencies as a hitter, but the struggles against higher level SEC pitching could be a turn-off for John Mozeliak and Co. Overall though, I like Martin and the potential as a hitter that he shows can’t be ignored.

Tanner Burns, RHP, Auburn

Once again, there is a stud pitcher from Auburn entering the MLB Draft. This time, it’s RHP Tanner Burns. Burns is one of the smaller RHP prospects in this class and that alone could hurt his stock a little bit, standing at only 6’0; which pitchers at that size are starting to become more of a rarity in the MLB.

Though Tanner Burns might be undersized for his position, there is no doubt that he is a stud on the mound. He usually sits at around 93-96 MPH on his fastball and doesn’t have much of a problem locating it. His breaking stuff is above average and has a solid curveball with a slider that usually touches mid-80’s.

The production was there at Auburn throughout his career as well. He took a spot in the Tigers rotation early in his freshman year and cemented himself as one of the best freshman pitchers in the country, garnering numerous Freshman All-American Honors.

Burns had a 2.82 ERA as a sophomore with 102 K’s over 79 innings, and even played a huge role in leading the Auburn Tigers to the College World Series.

He was off to a very hot start as a Junior with a 2.42 ERA as well as leading the team in K’s before the season ended early due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Overall, Burns is a very solid pitcher with a high upside that has drawn comps to All-Star Sonny Gray by many scouts. He could be a huge need filler in the Cardinals system and get to the Majors within two years if he plays his cards right.

Carmen Mlodzinski, RHP, South Carolina

Last year, my draft crush was Jackson Rutledge; a flame-throwing JuCo pitcher who got drafted shortly before St. Louis by the Washington Nationals. This year, Mlodzinski is another version of Rutledge.

Mlodzinski has a high octane fastball that touches 99 with plenty of movement. He only has two other pitches though, which are his changeup as well as a pretty effective slider.

His first two seasons with South Carolina were rough, throughout both seasons he struggled with inconsistencies with his control and resulted in a lot of walks and an inflated ERA because of it. Early into his sophomore year, he broke his foot and had to miss the remainder of the season; which was a huge loss for the Gamecocks.

Mlodzinski bounced back though, he decided to play in the Cape Cod League; which is one of the most prominent amateur baseball leagues, and an opportunity for further evaluation from baseball scouts as well as a good place to sharpen one’s’ skills. He had no trouble finding the strike zone and even was considered a star in the league. That breakout season alone put him on the radar for many teams in this year’s draft.

The Gamecock ace came into the 2020 season with a ton of hype, making plenty of Preseason All-American teams as well as getting first-round hype in the MLB Draft. He finished the shortened season with a 2.84 ERA with 22 K’s in only four starts.

With Mlodzinski, the team that drafts him is taking a huge gamble on his ridiculous upside. He has shown a ton of improvement from his freshman/sophomore year but still has a long way to go if he wants to succeed in the Major Leagues. With his talent though, it is a gamble worth taking.

(P.S. Mo, if you are reading this: Carmen Mlodzinski, No Matter What.)

Slade Cecconi, RHP, Miami

I might sound like a broken record at this point, but the point still stands. The Cardinals need right-handed pitching in their system. So, that’s why the majority of these profiles were about filling that need.

Not only does Slade Cecconi have the coolest name in this draft, but he has the arm talent to be a problem for hitters at the next level.

Scouts love his size at 6’4′ while weighing about 220. His fastball tops out at about 97 mph but can decrease as he goes deeper into starts, which worries scouts as well as cause debate to whether he is a reliever or starter past college. He has an effective power slider but his curveball and changeup could use some further development.

He does not have too much of a problem with throwing strikes but leaving the ball over the heart of the plate on occasion seems to be a weakness for Cecconi.

Slade Cecconi will be entering the draft as a draft-eligible sophomore and is one of the younger college arms in this class at only 20 years old. He made the rotation as a true freshman but didn’t amount to much; posting a 4.16 ERA with 89 strikeouts in 80 innings.

He still came away with Freshman All-American Honors though. He was starting to show his potential during the 2020 season before the season ended shortly.

Though he might end up deciding to stay another year at Miami since he got to play only one season at the school he was firmly committed to coming out of high school. He could have gone higher in the 2018 MLB Draft, but his strong commitment to the University pushed him to the Baltimore Orioles in the 38th Round, but he did not sign.

Cecconi is yet another pitcher oozing potential with a high octane fastball and a solid breaking ball arsenal. As stated, there are concerns about whether he can remain in a starting rotation but the talent from Cecconi is there.

This 2020 Draft is very rich with college arms. Because of this, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Cardinals take multiple early, or go with a higher upside position player with their first pick and take a pitcher later. Either way, the Cardinals will have a ton of options at 21 and in just under a month we will see who will be joining the organization.