This dark horse could help the St. Louis Cardinals at catcher in 2023

Julio Rodriguez, a catcher for the St. Louis Cardinals’ Double-A team, could contribute behind the plate next year.

When St. Louis Cardinals fans throw around “catcher of the future,” Ivan Herrera is usually the player they’re referring to. But Julio Rodriguez of the Double-A Springfield Cardinals is putting up a nice season at the plate and could squirm his way into the conversation for next year’s catching duties after Yadier Molina finally relinquishes the throne.

Rodriguez dealt with a hamate injury last season in Double-A and hit only .196/.252/.299, but he excelled on defense, which is his calling card. He threw out a whopping nine of 14 attempted base thieves in 2021 with Springfield, and while he hasn’t matched that impressive percentage this year, he’s still been above average, nailing nine of 29, a 31% success rate.

Where Rodriguez has opened eyes this year is in the batter’s box. He’s hitting .265/.413/.462, and he’s shown a better eye at the plate than at any point in his career, walking 33 times in 167 plate appearances after taking only 12 free passes in 30 fewer plate appearances last year.

Much of the reason Rodriguez isn’t a top-level prospect is his age. He’s 25, three years older than Herrera, and he hasn’t made it to Triple-A yet. There’s reason to think that with his hitting breakout so far this season, he’ll receive a promotion to Memphis at some point. If Rodriguez continues to hit respectably in Memphis, it’s feasible that he’ll obtain at least a cup of coffee with the major league club in 2023.

While Herrera and Andrew Knizner are likely to split the bulk of the catching duties next year, provided the Cardinals don’t go outside the organization for an upgrade, Rodriguez could vulture a few games from those two. The offensive bar for catchers is virtually underground, and because Rodriguez is better defensively than Herrera and Knizner, even fringe-average production at the plate could make him worth a longer look.

By no means should fans consider Rodriguez “the next big thing,” but for a position with so many question marks around it next year, he has a chance to emerge and make a meaningful contribution. Keep him in the back of your mind.