St. Louis Cardinals: Ivan Herrera ranked in top 10 catching prospects

The beginning of the year is always a fantastic time for fans who love to read about prospects. Right around late January after fall and winter leagues end, each major publication puts out their top prospect lists, getting fans excited about where their upcoming players rank. Thankfully for fans of the St. Louis Cardinals, the farm system is usually a point of pride.

2021 is no different and although the farm system may lack truly elite talent at the moment, it is one of the deeper systems in the MLB and ranks right in the middle of the pack. The Cardinals had three players in Baseball America’s top 100, putting them second in the NL Central behind just the Pittsburgh Pirates.

While MLB Pipeline hasn’t put out their top 100 list yet, they have been slowly releasing their top 10 prospects by position. The St. Louis Cardinals had Matthew Liberatore ranked at No. 5 in Pipeline’s list of top 10 left-handed pitcher prospects, and now they have another entry on the catcher list.

While Andrew Knizner may end up being the main guy for 2021, Ivan Herrera is going to be on his heels fast.

Looking at the top 10, Herrera is the second-youngest player at just 20 years old. In 2019, Herrera ended the year at High-A as a 19-year-old. His .284/.374/.405 slash line over 87 games across two levels reflects his maturity at the plate. After finishing at High-A, he went on to impress further in 10 games in the Arizona Fall League before spending his 2020 at the team’s alternate site.

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All reports from the alternate site said that Herrera was making a ton of progress defensively which is likely what pushed him into the sport’s top 10 catching prospects. In MLB Pipeline’s further notes on the list, Herrera was listed as the highest riser. The Cardinals signed a 16-year-old Herrera for $200k in the 2016-2017 international signing period. He wasn’t ranked in the top 30 and has ended up as one of the better signings from that class.

Herrera’s ETA is listed as 2022 which sounds about right. Knizner will either start or backup Yadi this year with Herrera likely starting at AA. However, a dual tandem of Knizner and Herrera certainly looks like the future in the next 2-3 years.

Herrera has been pushed hard by the Cardinals and has responded well at each spot. If Herrera is able to keep it up, he’ll find himself higher on this list next year. Prospect rankings aren’t everything, but Herrera definitely deserves his spot on the top 10.