4 intriguing minor league arms who could debut with the Cardinals in 2024

Pitching was a major problem for the St. Louis Cardinals in 2023, and while the rotation shouldered most of the blame, the bullpen had its issues as well. The Cardinals bullpen had a 4.47 ERA last season, which ranked 23rd in the major leagues. Ryan Helsley was not the dominant force at the back end of games that he showed himself to be in 2022, and Giovanny Gallegos, the team's other bullpen stalwart, had a down season by his standards as well.

The Cardinals have a few spots in their bullpen solidified for the 2024 season, but questions remain about the bridge to get there. John King was a pleasant surprise, as he surrendered only three earned runs in 18.2 innings, but his 3.84 FIP suggests regression is imminent. Andre Pallante had issues last season, with a 4.76 ERA and only 5.7 strikeouts per nine innings. Perhaps the “death ball” he has been crafting will help him improve. 

One can’t forget about the arms on the farm, though. The Cardinals' minor league pitching department has been much maligned in recent years, as the team has fallen far behind most of the major leagues in its development of pitchers amid its insistence of relying on defense instead of strikeouts, but some hurlers made strides at the minor league levels and could find their way into the Cardinals bullpen this season.

These four pitchers have a chance to make their major league debuts out of the bullpen for the Cardinals in 2024.

Andre Granillo

Although the Cardinals (perhaps unwisely) spent most of their recent pitching draft picks on pitch-to-contact control artists, Andre Granillo breaks from that herd. The Cardinals drafted Granillo in the 14th round in 2021 out of UC Riverside after he showed improved stuff in the Cape Cod League.

Granillo is strictly a bullpen arm, and he broke out in 2022, posting elite strikeout numbers amid a fastball that drastically increased in velocity, from the high 80s and low 90s to the mid-90s. He fanned 14.9 batters per nine innings across three levels, although his 5.2 walks per nine was higher than desired. His strikeout percentage of 35.7% in 2022 trailed only Tink Hence among pitchers in the Cardinals system with 50 innings or more.

Granillo pairs his fastball with a lethal slider, which had a whiff rate around 60% the past two seasons. His sinker and curveball need work, and his changeup could stand to improve to give him a weapon against left-handed hitters. Granillo is close to seeing major league action, and it looks like the Cardinals may have unearthed a gem in the late rounds.

Ian Bedell

A healthy Ian Bedell turned heads in 2023 after Tommy John surgery sidelined him for all but 8.1 innings in 2021 and 2022. The Cardinals drafted Bedell in the fourth round of the five-round 2020 draft, and he blossomed in 2023, putting up a career-best 2.44 ERA in 96 innings at High-A Peoria. He also struck out 106 batters.

Command has long been Bedell's calling card, especially with his curveball. His fastball won't blow anyone away, as it sits around 94 mph, but it has decent movement and spin. A slider that he added to his arsenal at the beginning of 2023 has also paid substantial dividends.

Bedell's ceiling, like that of many pitchers in the Cardinals system, is probably that of a back-of-the-rotation starter, but a job out of the bullpen in his first taste of the major leagues is likely. Although Bedell has yet to reach Double-A, the Cardinals will likely put him on the fast track given that he's already 24.