This struggling Cardinal might be blocking some serious talent

The Cardinals have hit their first roadblock of 2026. In a season where nobody saw the word “competitive” in the Redbird vocabulary, St. Louis has been demonstratively gritty in the first few weeks. 

Unfortunately, with every up comes a down. The Cardinals need to get ahead of this problem before it guts their win total and hinders the organization's future. 

Pedro Pages is starting to take up space 

At one point, Pages was the “general of the pitching staff.” An opportunity born of the discontent that certain Cardinal hurlers, who have since skipped town, had for backstop Willson Contreras. 

Although Pages has shown flashes of being a defensive specialist, 2026 has been brutal thus far. In terms of blocking and framing, he ranks decidedly below league average, and his caught stealing numbers don’t turn any heads. 

If Pages isn’t going to be a force behind the plate, and he’s going to be an eye-roll AT the plate, what is he providing to this Cardinals roster? As a human being and a teammate, Pages has been box office. There aren’t enough things to say for St. Louis’ backup catcher over the last few years in that department. That being said, rebuilds aren’t founded on smiles; they are built with barrels. 

Not only is Pages struggling to start his 2026 campaign, but the Redbirds might have a youngster or two waiting in the wings. 

The St. Louis catching factory 

First of all, Ivan Herrera is a catcher. We all know this, right? He’s seen limited time behind the dish in 2026. Although it hasn’t looked great, it’s no worse than what Pages has shown. 

Herrera’s early offensive struggles are an unwelcome sight for the Redbirds, but he has the pedigree to turn his ship around. The S.S. Pages is sinking, and fast. 

Minor league standouts Jimmy Crooks (STL, #8) and Raniel Rodriguez (STL, #3) both man the catcher position and have been producing at a high clip. 

Through 12 games, Crooks is sporting an OPS north of 1.000 with 4 home runs. His quartet of blasts would rank him only behind Jordan Walker on the big club. His big league cup of coffee was demotivating. However, the numbers since are anything but. 

Rodriguez is farther away from an MLB debut, but his big league stardom feels all but certain. His combination of playing the catcher position, prolific power, and control of the strike zone has had analysts' mouths watering since his breakout last season.

MLB Pipeline grades the young bopper out at a 65 in the power category. For a backstop, that’s Cal Raleigh territory. Rodriguez is more of a glimmer on the horizon, but his mere presence provides urgency to shuffle through names like Crooks and Herrera before his arrival. He. Is. Inevitable. 

President of Baseball Operations (POBO) Chaim Bloom has his first in-season challenge of 2026. The stalemate former POBO John Mozeliak used to play with ice-cold Redbirds had remnants of a filibuster. If Chaim Bloom wants to retain the trust of the Cardinal fandom, the time to act is NOW. 

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