The St. Louis Cardinals’ most underrated prospect

The St. Louis Cardinals farm system has some talent on the way. On the pitching side, Andre Pallante has quietly become an underrated prospect.

As the St. Louis Cardinals prepare to build a roster for the 2022 major-league baseball season, most of the emphasis will be on the free agent and trade markets. What moves will the team make to improve? No doubt there are some needs for the club. While fans (myself included) are wanting to see some big name additions, the team has some help on the way. The pitching depth has eroded in recent seasons, but the Cardinals have some arms coming up through the system.

Most of the hype regarding the Cardinals’ pitching prospects revolves around Matthew Liberatore, and rightly so. Liberatore has the potential to be an ace and could make his debut in 2022. There is another pitching prospect that has been quietly putting up great numbers and some fans may not be familiar with him.

His name is Andre Pallante and he is the St. Louis Cardinals most underrated prospect.

Drafted in the fourth round of the 2019 draft from California, Pallante has been building his resume as a legit MLB prospect. Only 23 years of age, he made his way to AAA Memphis to finish the season, the last rung on the ladder before reaching the majors.

Pallante spent most of the 2021 season at AA Springfield, and in twenty-one games compiled a 4-7 record, but pitched better than the record would indicate. His ERA was a respectable 3.82. He averaged a little under eight strikeouts per nine innings in 2021.

There is a lot to like about Pallante. He has followed up a strong 2021 season with an impressive run in the Arizona Fall League. His trajectory is trending straight up.

Admittedly, I am not one to get too excited over prospects. My preference is to go with proven talent every time. With that said, the Cardinals have a handful of players coming through the system that are looking promising. Liberatore and Zack Thompson are the two names most mentioned on the pitching side, but don’t count out Andre Pallante.

The most underrated Cardinals pitching prospect could be a more common name to fans before too long.