Ranking the 10 most valuable Cardinals who will define their future

The vibes are high with the St. Louis Cardinals right now, and you could argue things are even more exciting when you zoom out and look at the bigger picture, considering how many valuable, young players this organization has right now.

The Cardinals are in the first year of their rebuild under Chaim Bloom, and yet are firmly in playoff position if the season ended today, and their success is being driven by their emerging young core. While we all need to wait and see what this season ends up becoming, it is difficult not to be highly encouraged by the trajectory the Cardinals are on long-term.

Between the group of young players succeeding at the big league level, their loaded farm system that ranks among the best in the sport, and the sheer amount of draft capital they have in this upcoming draft (six selections in the top 86 picks), this core is likely to strengthen just by internal development and acquisitions, with viritually zero payroll commitements they are tied to, allowing Bloom to shape this team however he sees fit.

As I've done biannually for years now, I am going to rank the 10 most valuable young players in the Cardinals organization as of today. I'll look to revisit this list again in September after we see how the year unfolds, but it's already pretty incredible to see how much the list has changed since John Mozeliak's final weeks in charge of baseball operations.

Here are a few rules I abide by when making this list to help guide the ranking:
1. Players must have 2 or more years of club control remaining
2. Players must be under the age of 30
3. Years of control, positional value, and potential all play a role in where a player is ranked.

A good rule of thumb for a list like this, although it probably doesn't apply every time, is "Would I trade X player for Y player on this list?". Whichever player you'd rather hold onto is "likely" the more valuable player, in the sense that this list is getting at.

Another thing to note, this list is not about "Who the Cardinals need to be good", but rather, in a vacuum, who are the most valuable players just as assets. Yes, the Cardinals need pitching badly, but I did not give a bump to any pitchers on this list because the Cardinals hope they'll be good. I ranked them based on how valuable of an asset they are as we sit here today.

Does not qualify for this list (Fewer than 2 years of club control remaining and/or over the age of 30): Lars Nootbaar and Riley O'Brien

Let's dive into the honorable mentions!

Honorable Mentions: 3B Nolan Gorman, RHP Tanner Franklin, OF Nathan Church, OF Tai Peete, RHP Michael McGreevy, C Jimmy Crooks, RHP Hunter Dobbins, LHP Matthew Libeartore, and C Leonardo Bernal

Selfishly, I wanted to sneak Tanner Franklin onto the list, but for now, I'll have him in the honorable mention category. I personally think he is the best pitching prospect in the Cardinals' system right now, but I'll allow a bit more time and observed development to occur before allowing that helium to rise him up this list.

Nathan Church has had a great rookie year so far and could easily rise on this list by the end of the season, but considering he has been projected to be more of a fourth outfielder, let's give it more time before we jump him over some players. That's part of why Michael McGreevy misses out on the list as well, since he lacks some of the upside to be more than a back-of-the-rotation starter.

Although after McGreevy just lowered his season ERA to 2.52 after six innings of scoreless baseball against the Dodgers, maybe it's a bit unfair not to take the known commodity on this list, even if his ceiling is more limited than other names you'll see.

Honestly, any of these players could realistically slot into the final two spots on the top 10. Nolan Gorman still has that power that you can dream on and has played an excellent third base this year, but he only has two years of club control remaining. Jimmy Crooks and Leonardo Bernal are exciting young catchers, and Tai Peete currently leads all Cardinals' minor leaguers in extra-base hits after coming over in the Brendan Donovan trade this offseason.

But now let's jump into the top 10.

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