Cardinals right-hander dazzles in Spring Training with increased fastball velocity

As the St. Louis Cardinals headed into the 2026 offseason, starting pitching was by far the biggest need for St. Louis, having traded away Sonny Gray to the Boston Red Sox. The Cardinals addressed this issue in some capacity, signing Dustin May, a former top prospect in the Los Angeles Dodgers' system. That said, there are still plenty of question marks surrounding the starting rotation heading into the 2026 season.

However, St. Louis may have found an answer to one of those questions, as a recent trade piece has impressed to begin Spring Training. That player has been right-hander Richard Fitts. With Fitts being already 26 years old, many fans didn’t think much of him after his arrival in the aforementioned Sonny Gray trade. But, to begin the season, Fitts has yet to surrender a run and has shown an increase in fastball velocity as well.

Richard Fitts' velocity has Cardinals fans dreaming on his upside

In his first outing against the New York Mets in late February, Fitts started and went two scoreless innings, surrendering two hits and tallying one strikeout. Although that was a small sample size, Cardinals fans got an extended look at Fitts earlier this week against Nicaragua in an exhibition prior to the World Baseball Classic.

Fitts was dominant in that start, going three scoreless innings with four strikeouts. Despite allowing four hits, Fitts had a strike percentage of 68.3%, which included 11 whiffs. His fastball has also averaged 97.6 miles per hour this spring, a tad higher than his average of 95.9 last season. Although Nicaragua isn’t the strongest of WBC teams, they do field a team consisting of current and former major leaguers, including Mark Vientos of the New York Mets and former top prospect Jeter Downs. Their team is also coached by three-time Manager of the Year award winner and former World Series champion Dusty Baker.

Fitts is expected to take the mound again Monday against the Houston Astros. If he continues to perform in the preseason, there’s reason to believe he can slot in as the Cardinals’ fourth starter behind the trio of Matthew Liberatore, Dustin May and Michael McGreevy. That’d leave Andre Pallante, Hunter Dobbins and Kyle Leahy in competition for the fifth spot in the rotation. Either way, with 14 Spring Training games remaining, Fitts’ progression will be worth keeping an eye on as the 2026 season approaches.