The St. Louis Cardinals saw a massive boost to one of their roster's greatest weaknesses when they called up Blaze Jordan this weekend, and they could see a similar lift by shaking up their bullpen.
All season long, the Cardinals have been managing a tension with a rotation that goes five, maybe six innings per start, and a bullpen that relies heavily on a few arms that they rely on. It's cracked at different times during the season, with this weekend's series against the Minnesota Twins being the latest example of that. In 9.2 innings during those three games, the Cardinals' relievers allowed 10 runs on 11 hits and seven walks.
Luckily for the Cardinals, they have two arms in Memphis who could help shore up some of those woes in righties Max Rajcic and Luis Gastelum.
Rajcic, 24, won Minor League Pitcher of the Month for the Cardinals during the month of May, and has become a weapon as a bullpen arm who could give the Cardinals multiple innings if he were called up to St. Louis. Since Kyle Leahy was moved into their rotation, the Cardinals have lacked an option they can consistently rely on to cover more than one inning at a time.
The right-hander has been a starter for his entire professional career, but seemed to hit a bump in his development. Since transitioning to the bullpen, he's found a whole new gear in his game.
Our Minor League Pitcher of the Month is RHP Max Rajcic!
— Cardinals Player Development (@CardsPlayerDev) June 11, 2026
Rajcic, 24, posted a 1.20 ERA (2 ER/15.0 IP), 2 Wins, 3 Saves, a 0.80 WHIP, and 19 SO while allowing only 8 H across 11 appearances for Memphis.
Among qualified STL minor league pitchers, Rajcic ranked first for the month… pic.twitter.com/6V5bxCSUtQ
Gastelum, also 24, is in his first season at the Triple-A level and has been on fire as of late for Memphis. He's been seen as a high upside relief prospect for the last few years, and now his wicked change-up is keeping batters in check on a consistent basis.
While Rajcic has proven to be capable of going multiple innings, Gastelum could present the Cardinals with a young reliever who is has the tools to keep left-handed hitters at bay due to that change -up's action.
Luis Gastelum allowed six runs in a game a month ago, May 13. Since then, he has made 11 relief appearances for Memphis:
— Tom Ackerman (@Ackerman1120) June 14, 2026
14.2 IP, 1 ER, 6H, 1 BB, 17 K.#stlcards ⛽️
At this point, both young relievers have earned an opportunity to impact the big league roster, and it sounds like the Cardinals may be ready to shake things up again. But who gets the boot?
Which Cardinals would lose their roster spot if the Max Rajcic and Luis Gastelum are promoted?
If the Cardinals were to shake up their bullpen, they could easily create a 40-man spot by designating Chris Roycroft for an assignment. This would create space for one of Rajcic or Gastelum, but in order to fit both, they'll need to option either Gordon Graceffo or Matt Svanson, and then designate someone like Cesar Prieto or Yohel Pozo for an assignment.
Will the Cardinals be that aggressive? That remains to be seen. It feels like almost a guarantee that they will replace Roycroft as soon as Monday, but doing more than that would be another piece of evidence that the Cardinals are operating very differently than in the past.
The Cardinals have done a much better job as of late developing young arms, and we could see a few new ones on display soon in Rajcic and Gastelum.
