Cardinals dream for Leo Bernal is why fans rightfully wonder how Rainiel Rodriguez fits

Having an abundance of catching talent is a good "problem" to have, but it has rightfully raised a lot of questions for St. Louis Cardinals fans. And if the organization wants to buck the current trend around Major League Baseball and see Leo Bernal be a classic, everyday catcher, then it really does raise questions about how Rainiel Rodriguez will fit into their plans.

The reason I want to talk about this today is because Chaim Bloom recently appeared on the Seeing Red podcast with Bernie Miklasz and Will Leitch, and in that appearance, he talked about how the Cardinals front office was wondering why there became such a strong narrative in the media and fanbase about Rodriguez potentially playing third base long-term.

The Cardinals have maintained their position that Rodriguez is a very promising catcher, and Cardinals farm director recently raved about Rodriguez's work behind the plate on my podcast Dealin' the Cards. I'm with them in their belief in Rodriguez as a catcher, but the Cardinals have also been pretty clear that they believe Bernal could be a guy who catches a whole lot of games moving forward.

Derrick Goold recently touched on this in his Q/A over on STL Today.

"I asked manager Oli Marmol about the ideal catcher playing time breakdown going forward and how the Cardinals have the makings of a good 100-62 split if they want it," Goold wrote in a Q/A over on STL Today. "He stopped me and asked why would they want that. I said there was a trend in the game to split time at catcher, reduce workload, and keep the catcher in play as a DH, similar to what they’ve done. He flipped the question by pointing out that Bernal is a switch-hitter, durable, and if they could start him 120-130 games why wouldn’t they? They wanted to find out if they could."

Here's part of the answer to the Cardinals catching question: Rodriguez hasn't even played in Triple-A yet, and Bernal just got a cup of coffee in St. Louis. A lot can change. But if the Cardinals do see Bernal reach that dream of being a true every day catcher, then it really is no wonder why Cardinals fans are asking what that means for Rodriguez.

If Leo Bernal is a classic every day catcher, then that significantly impacts Cardinals Rainiel Rodriguez plan

If the Cardinals adopt the more modern approach of handling catcher's workload, then having about 62 starts available for Rodriguez certainly helps solve a lot of those questions, but there would still be another 100 or so games ot figure out for his playing time. But if Bernal is really going to catch almost every day, then 32-42 starts a year behind the plate would be a pretty small part of Rodriguez's overall role.

The Cardinals also notably have Alec Burleson entrenched at first base, and unless they plan on selling high on him any time soon, they do not have that as an opening for at-bats. The Cardinals maintain they want Burleson to be an every day player and not sit against left-handed pitching, so they can't even steal 30 or so games at that position either for Rodriguez to start.

So, that basically leaves two options. The first is designated hitter, and the second is third base. If the Cardinals end up trading Burleson or Ivan Herrera, that solves a lot of those questions, but if they don't, then that's exactly why Cardinals fans wonder about Rodriguez's future at third base.

I also find it extremely notable that, on that Seeing Red podcast, Bloom made it clear that Jesus Baez could end up being a shortstop for them at the Major League level, and if that's the case, he could be the Masyn Winn replacement while Rodriguez plays third. I'll get into that potential lineup over the coming days.

Bottom line: I very much think Rodriguez could be a major player in the Cardinals' catching situation moving forward, but there are also a lot of factors that would point to him finding more playing time at a different position. Rodriguez may end up being even more valuable to the Cardinals if he can rake in their lineup and move around the field based on what they need, and they are doing their best to position him to impact the game in a variety of ways.

How the Cardinals are handling this situation seems to be really wise. I am not at all questioning their desire to push Bernal and Rodriguez to see what they can do and adjust as they go. But I did want to write about this again because, if the Cardinals are still confused as to why others wonder about Rodriguez playing third base, this is exactly why.

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