Draft pundit likens Cardinals' Trevor Condon to star rookie as the steal of the draft

The St. Louis Cardinals' latest bite at the apple in an attempt to acquire stars for the future is wrapping up as the 2026 MLB draft draws to a close, and fans have to be excited about the direction in which new president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom appears to be taking the organization. So far in the draft, the Cardinals have focused on talents up the middle, and the top prize was center fielder Trevor Condon, whom the team snagged with the 13th overall selection. ESPN's Kiley McDaniel believes the Cardinals made out like bandits with Condon, deeming him the steal of the draft.

McDaniel compared Condon to American League Rookie of the Year frontrunner Kevin McGonigle, who was his pick to click in the 2023 draft, and Cardinals fans should be salivating to hear Condon mentioned in the same breath as the young Detroit Tigers stud. McGonigle is currently hitting .285 with an .817 OPS and was named as a reserve on the American League All-Star squad.

According to McDaniel, players like Condon are generally underrated at this stage of his development, and in an interview prior to the 2023 draft, he fawned over McGonigle, believing he'd hit .280 with 20 home runs and deserved to be picked around 15th overall. Detroit ultimately chose McGonigle at pick 37, reinforcing McDaniel's belief that the scouting industry had consistently been too low on contact-oriented players without significant power.

The early portion of this draft appeared to vindicate McDaniel, as the first 12 hitters off the board were ones who made plenty of contact at the amateur ranks. He believes Condon's defense and solid pull and lift traits in his swing give him the opportunity to make a difference at the major league level but cautioned Cardinals fans not to expect the world from the center fielder.

Everything will need to break just right for Condon to emerge as a force like McGonigle, and McDaniel acknowledged that Condon could just wind up as a low-end starter. FanGraphs is one site that isn't as enamored with Condon, labeling him as a classic late first-round or compensation round pick, and FanGraphs writers Eric Longenhagen and Brendan Gawlowski discussed whether Condon was the least tooled-up player taken at that point in the draft.

Several players with Condon's build and skill set have exceeded expectations in their careers

Condon stands at a modest 5 feet, 11 inches tall, and as McDaniel noted, a number of diminutive players in recent years have defied traditional scouting and made All-Star teams despite their stature. The most notable of these in recent memory is Jose Altuve, a 5-foot-6 second baseman who has crafted a Hall of Fame-level career despite peaking at No. 28 in the Houston Astros prospect rankings from Baseball America in 2011.

The Cleveland Guardians' Steven Kwan is perhaps a more accurate comparison to Condon, as the fellow left-handed-hitting outfielder was also a contact maven who faced questions regarding his size. For those seeking a Cardinals bend, 2006 World Series MVP David Eckstein is the same height as Altuve and became a fan favorite in St. Louis for his hard-nosed style of play. He had a solid career outside of his postseason exploits, earning All-Star nods with the Cardinals in 2005 and 2006.

An Altuve-like career from Condon would be a massive stretch, but the league has begun to appreciate smaller players who can put the bat on the ball. With McDaniel singling out Condon as a potential draft steal, Cardinals fans should be thrilled with Bloom and company's drafting acumen and expect continued results as the Cardinals build their pipeline.

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