Cardinals farm system review shines light on high upside prospects coming soon

I think it's safe to say that in order for the St. Louis Cardinals to return to prominence under Chaim Bloom's leadership, they are going to have to get back to being one of the best organizations in baseball at developing young talent.

That is deeply woven into the roots of this organization, as many years ago, Branch Rickey invented the whole idea of a farm system, and the Cardinals' use of it has fueled most of their World Series championships.

In recent years, the pipeline has dried up, causing the Cardinals to stumble and fall into mediocrity. More specifically, the organization stopped finding ways to develop impact starting pitching and star-level bats.

Well, now that Bloom has been around for a few years and has been putting his fingerprints all over the Cardinals' player development and performance departments and recently overhauling their scouting department, the Cardinals are now getting great reviews from the best prospect evaluators around.

Baseball America has the Cardinals as one of the best farm systems in baseball, and their top four prospects are in an elite class

On Baseball America's NL Central farm system review podcast, Ben Badler and Carlos Collazo spoke very highly of the current state of the Cardinals' pipeline, believing they were clearly a top 10 farm system in the game and that their top four prospects - JJ Wetherholt, Liam Doyle, Rainiel Rodriguez, and Joshua Baez, could rival the top four prospects in any system.

Wetherholt is a consensus top-five prospect in all of baseball among scouting outlets and is an early favorite for the 2026 NL Rookie of the Year award. Doyle, who the Cardinals selected with the fifth overall pick in the 2025 MLB Draft, has drawn comparisons to the Red Sox's ace Garrett Crochet and has the potential to be a front-line starter. Rodriguez had one of the best offensive seasons we've seen from an 18-year-old prospect, and looks to be a star middle-of-the-order bat. Oh, and Baez just smashed all expectations in 2025 and now looks like one of the best outfield prospects in the game with his incredible power and speed combo and newly found bat-to-ball skills.

Considering the number of injuries the Cardinals had in their system last year, it's pretty exciting to see them still viewed in such a positive light. Tink Hence, Quinn Mathews, and Brian Holiday all missed significant time in 2025, and arms like Tekoah Roby, Cooper Hjerpe, and Sem Robberse will miss most or all of the 2026 season. Bounce-back seasons from them could strengthen the state of the Cardinals' system further, as could the influx of talent they saw from the 2025 MLB Draft.

While the Cardinals unfortunately fell in the 2026 MLB Draft Lottery, they still have the chance to add even more talent this next summer, and considering Bloom's track record of developing strong farm systems, it's easier to believe that brighter days are ahead for St. Louis. I haven't even mentioned names like Leonardo Bernal, Brandon Clarke, Jimmy Crooks, Jesus Baez, Yairo Padilla, and more.

The future seems to be getting brighter for St. Louis, and if they end up getting strong returns for their trade candidates this offseason, their farm system will be in an even stronger position entering the 2026 season.