The 3 best Cardinals performers in the Arizona Fall League

The annual Arizona Fall League has come to a close. The Salt River Rafters defeated the Surprise Saguaros in the championship game on Saturday, November 16th.

In total, the St. Louis Cardinals sent eight players to participate in the AFL. Position players Thomas Saggese, Leonardo Bernal, and Nathan Church along with pitchers Matt Svanson, Trent Baker, Ixan Henderson, Brycen Mautz, and Alex Cornwell represented the Cardinals in Arizona. These players were on the Glendale Desert Dogs. The Desert Dogs finished with a 16-14 record, and they were tied for second in the League.

The competition in the AFL is filled primarily with players who are at or near the Double-A level. Therefore, players who have seen major-league innings typically perform well in the circuit. Younger prospects are invited to showcase their skills or test their abilities against greater competition. Other players use the AFL as a time to continue their development or changes they made during the regular season.

Some Cardinals performed quite well in the AFL this year while others struggled. Here's a look at who had the best fall of the bunch.

INF Thomas Saggese

Thomas Saggese's presence on the roster wasn't to have him showcase his skills; those are well-known already. After making his major league debut in 2024, sending Saggese to the Arizona Fall League was to give him an opportunity to refine his skills. Saggese is a utility infielder who can capably play second base, third base, and shortstop. The Cardinals' hope in sending their #5 prospect to Arizona was to get him regular reps defensively.

Saggese slashed .391/.524/.594 for a 1.118 OPS in 64 at-bats. He hit a whopping seven doubles, two home runs, and he drove in 10 base runners. Sagges walked more times (16) than he struck out (15). Clearly, Thomas's bat is ready for the majors. After swinging at a team-high 41.2% of pitches outside the zone in the majors, Saggese needed to work on his patience, and he's done just that in Arizona.

Of the 14 games Saggese appeared in, he played 13 at second base. The Cardinals' hope in sending him to the Arizona Fall League was for him to refine his defensive skills there. In 111 innings at second, Saggese had a fielding percentage of .958. He committed two errors while finishing with 32 infield assists.

This is a small drop-off from his time in the majors at second base. He played 80.1 innings there in the majors, and he committed only one error with a fielding percentage of .977. The hope for the Cardinals is that Saggese continues to grow in comfort at second base.

It's likely Saggese enters spring training in a competition for second base with the incumbent Nolan Gorman and Brendan Donovan. Both Donovan and Saggese have positional flexibility, and the depth chart could change if third baseman Nolan Arenado is dealt this offseason. Regardless, Saggese's strong showing in the AFL sets him up well for success in 2025 no matter his position.