Electric Cardinals pitching prospect is now just one step away from his MLB debut

One thing the St. Louis Cardinals rotation lacks right now is electric arms who look like some of the top arms in today's game. Tekaoh Roby, the arm in their system who may have the best chance at becoming that for the Cardinals, is now just one step away from his MLB debut.

On Monday, the Cardinals announced a slew of promotions within the organization, including Roby's move up to Triple-A Memphis. The promotion is well deserved and represents an important step not only in Roby's development but also the state of pitching in the Cardinals' organization.

Cardinals pitching prospect Tekoah Roby is just one step away from making his mark in the St. Louis rotation

In 10 starts for Springfield this year, Roby has posted a 2.49 ERA, covering 47 innings of work while striking out 57 batters and allowing just 0.96 WHIP. Since coming over from the Texas Rangers in the Jordan Montgomery trade, Roby has always had the upside of an impact starting pitcher, but injuries and subsequent loss of feel on the mound have held him back until this season.

Roby already caught eyes during spring training, drawing the attention of the Cardinals' front office and coaching staff during bullpens, backfield work, and his appearances in spring training games. He has since continued that momentum in Springfield and will now get the opportunity to show if he can pitch at a high level against Triple-A bats.

This isn't just dumb luck or Roby getting better results while doing the same things this year. His fastball is now sitting in mid-90s while touching 97 MPH with 17-18" of IVB after settling in the low-90s last year. It's the kind of fastball that can be used up in the zone to attack opposing hitters and produce real swing and miss. The improved specs on his fastball, paired with an already dynamic curveball, give him two pitches he can consistently rely on.

But obviously, you need more than that in today's game to get hitters out at a high level. While his slider has the potential to become a really dynamic pitch as well, his new change-up had really unlocked what he can do on the mound, as it sits in the mid-80s and has 900-1100 RPM and great depth on it. If Roby shows in Triple-A that those pitches can be dynamic against even better hitting talent, then it won't be long before the Cardinals want to see what he can do against Major League hitters.

Personally, Roby is my favorite pitching prospect in the organization right now, but the exciting thing for St. Louis is that he joins the prospect more widely viewed as their top young arm, Quinn Mathews, along with Michael McGreevy, as options for the Cardinals at Triple-A that could be plugged into their rotation soon. Mathews and Roby both represent upside for their rotation that they have not internally developed since Jack Flaherty, something that is a major revelation for the organization. Oh, and Tink Hence will rejoin that group soon as well.

We still need to see Roby pitch in Memphis and Mathews continue to get his feet underneath him post-injury before we talk about promotions to St. Louis, but it's entirely possible that we see all three of Mathews, Roby, and McGreevy pitching in St. Louis by season's end. This also has the potential to allow the Cardinals to get creative at the trade deadline, as they could move one of their lower-ceiling veteran starters to make way for one or two of these dynamic arms in the second half.

We'll keep you updated on Roby's progress at Memphis as the weeks go on, but for now, this is a milestone worth celebrating in his development, and in the big picture view of the Cardinals' internal pitching options.