Redbird Minor League Weekly: Baez's Five-Homer Week, Rodriguez Keeps Torching Double-A
By Caleb Hughes ·
Redbird Minor League Weekly covers the last 7 days of action for the Cardinals farm system.
Baez Turns Springfield Into a Launch Pad
Jesus Baez (AA, SS, Rank: 18) went 11-for-28 with five home runs, two doubles, and 11 RBI across six games this week, including a back-to-back home run sequence with Rainiel Rodriguez that happened twice in the same week. One of those swings completed a suspended-game win; another gave him his first career three-homer outing. The raw numbers are staggering on their own, but the month behind them makes the picture even sharper. Over his last 30 days at Double-A, Baez is slashing .321/.355/.679 with nine home runs and 26 RBI across 93 plate appearances, with a contact rate of 75.6 percent at a 58.4 percent swing rate. He is swinging at nearly everything and still making enough contact for the power to carry. For the full season across A+ and Double-A combined, he has 35 home runs, 95 RBI, and a .576 slugging percentage through 444 plate appearances.
The profile here is a 60 power tool paired with a 45 hit tool and a pull-heavy, power-first approach that keeps the walk rate compressed. Baez's BB% at Double-A this season sits at 4.0 percent, which is about as low as it gets for a prospect with everyday aspirations. That on-base ceiling is real and it is not going away, and any further physical development could push him toward first base where the offensive bar climbs higher. He projects as a second-division regular or strong-side platoon bat at third, and the defensive profile at shortstop is increasingly a courtesy title rather than a projection. None of that diminishes what he is doing right now. Five home runs in a week at Double-A at age 21, in the context of a 35-homer season, is a serious power statement. The question is whether the approach can survive an upper-level test where pitchers will live in the opposite quadrant, because the contact rates and swing tendencies leave that genuinely unresolved.
Rodriguez at 19: Still No Ceiling in Sight
Rainiel Rodriguez (AA, C, Rank: 1) went 9-for-26 with four home runs, two doubles, eight RBI, and just four strikeouts this week, earning MiLB Prospect Team of the Week honors. He and Baez hit back-to-back home runs twice in the same series, which is a fun storyline, but Rodriguez's individual month is what demands attention on its own terms. Over the last 30 days, he is slashing .413/.456/.848 with 10 home runs, 10 doubles, and 24 RBI across 103 plate appearances, with a contact rate of 79.5 percent at a 54.6 percent swing rate. He is being aggressively selective in the best possible way: hunting pitches to drive, connecting at a high clip, and keeping the strikeout rate at 10.7 percent over that stretch. For the full season across both stops, Rodriguez is hitting .314/.401/.560 with 23 home runs, 29 doubles, 50 walks, and 93 strikeouts in 474 plate appearances. He is 19 years old, spending the bulk of his season at Double-A.
The 60 power tool was always the headliner, but what makes this run remarkable is that the contact feel is holding up alongside the aggression. A 79.5 contact rate over a month-long sample while posting a .848 slugging percentage suggests the swing decisions are not deteriorating under pressure; they are improving. The honest critique of the profile remains behind the plate, where receiving and blocking are still works in progress, and a 45 field grade with a body that is already physically mature limits the defensive runway available. If the glove stalls, the offensive threshold he must clear to hold a catching role rises sharply. But right now, the bat is so far out ahead of that conversation that the defensive question almost feels secondary. A 19-year-old catcher slugging .560 across 103 combined games at A+ and Double-A while posting a 10.5 BB% is not a type; he is an individual, and this month has pushed his ceiling discussion into genuinely uncomfortable territory.
Quick Hits
- Liam Doyle (AA, LHP, Rank: 4) · posted 5.1 innings of shutout ball this week, allowing 4 hits and 1 walk while striking out 6 and generating 17 swinging misses. The week continued what has become one of the better sustained pitching runs in the system: over his last 30 days, Doyle owns a 1.37 ERA across 26.1 innings with 39 strikeouts, 9 walks, and a 0.87 WHIP. The season ERA at Double-A sits at 3.90 through 21 starts, and the whiff rate (34.9 percent) backs the strikeout totals. He was also formally assigned back to Springfield this week after a brief administrative move, keeping him on track in the Double-A rotation. A 60-grade fastball and 60-grade slider are both operating; the 50 command grade is the piece that will determine whether the #3 starter projection holds.
- Daniel Eagen (AA, RHP, Rank: 8) · had the most dominant pitching line of the week: 11.2 innings across two starts, 8 hits, 5 earned runs, just 1 walk, and 21 strikeouts, with 43 swinging misses. That walk total over nearly 12 innings is the version of Eagen that makes the #5 starter projection look conservative. Over his last 30 days, he has a 2.79 ERA across 29 innings with a 4.5 BB% and 38 strikeouts. The season home run rate (20 in 111.1 IP) is still the thing to watch, but weeks like this one show what the arsenal looks like when the fastball shape and curve are both working.
- Cade Crossland (A+, LHP, Rank: 46) · was the best individual pitching outing of the week: 6.1 innings, 1 hit, 0 earned runs, 2 walks, 9 strikeouts, and 18 swinging misses across 92 pitches. Since moving up to Peoria, the ERA over four starts sits at 1.40 with a 0.40 command grade showing some early growth. The season walk rate is still elevated (17.0 BB% combined), but the fastball/changeup pairing is already generating bat-missing numbers that fit the 60-grade changeup on his card. I'd take the over on his long-term command grades if the last month of A+ work is representative.
- Tai Peete (AA, OF, Rank: 19) · drove in 6 runs on 10 hits, including 2 homers and a triple, across 26 plate appearances this week. The last 30 days at Double-A have him slashing .348/.400/.587 with 4 home runs across 100 PA. The 40 hit tool grade is the ceiling debate; a 53.5 percent swing rate paired with a 66.8 percent contact rate for the season produces louder power numbers but also real swing-and-miss exposure. The move to third base as a projection makes sense given the arm, but the defensive settling there will determine how much the bat has to carry.
- Deniel Ortiz (AA, 3B, Rank: 28) · went 7-for-22 with 2 homers, 2 doubles, and 8 RBI this week, adding 2 walks and an HBP. Over his last 30 days at Double-A, he is hitting .294/.374/.612 with 7 home runs and a 16.2 percent strikeout rate that looks notably cleaner than his earlier statistical profile suggested. The 55 power tool is translating. Whether the contact gains hold at this level through a full look is still the central question for a player projected at first base or utility.
- Josiah Ragsdale (AA, OF, Rank: 35) · went 7-for-18 with a homer, triple, double, and 3 walks in 18 plate appearances this week, continuing a productive stretch since arriving in the Cardinals system via the Milwaukee trade on August 3. Over the last 30 days at Double-A, Ragsdale is slugging .557 with 7 home runs, a 13.5 BB%, and 34 stolen bases on the season combined. The 29.8 percent strikeout rate in that stretch is the honest concern for a 50 hit tool grade, but the speed and on-base feel give him a real profile regardless.
- Brandon Clarke (A+, LHP, Rank: 13) · struck out 11 over 6.2 innings against Peoria competition, allowing just 2 hits and 1 earned run with 6 walks and 18 swinging misses. The walk total keeps him honest; a 40 command grade has shown up consistently across his stops. Over the last 30 days, he has a 2.65 ERA with 24 strikeouts in 17 innings and a 34.8 K% at A+. The reliever projection is probably the right read on the command trajectory, but the bat-missing upside at 23 keeps the rotation conversation alive.
- Leonardo Bernal (AAA, C, Rank: 14) · went 4-for-17 with a homer and 4 walks in 17 plate appearances this week. The patience stands out: a 14.6 BB% over his last 30 days pairs with a .314 average and a 3-HR, 16-RBI stretch over 19 games. The season line at Triple-A (.282/.369/.477 with 16 home runs) looks like a player who has found his footing at the level. A 55 field grade at catcher gives him a real MLB floor even if the bat settles near average.
- Jack Gurevitch (AA, 1B, Rank: 21) · collected 6 hits, 2 doubles, 2 home runs, and 7 RBI in 22 plate appearances, though a 37.0 K% at Double-A this season is a persistent concern for a bat-first first baseman. His last-30-days contact rate of 65 percent at a 61.4 swing rate is the loudest swing-and-miss combination on the roster. The 55 hit tool grade depends on that number improving as he logs more reps at the level. Still, 26 home runs and 81 RBI across three levels this season is not nothing.
- Sebastian Dos Santos (A, SS, Rank: 16) · posted 6 hits, 2 home runs, 7 RBI, and 5 walks in 25 plate appearances this week. His 18.0 percent walk rate for the season and 20.7 percent over the last 30 days are legitimate for an 18-year-old at full-season ball. The 13 combined home runs and 27 stolen bases in 338 plate appearances show more offensive dimension than the 45 power grade currently reflects, and the glove-first shortstop profile at second base leaves room for the bat to surprise.
- Mason Molina (AAA, LHP, Rank: 48) · went 4.2 shutout innings with 9 strikeouts and 0 walks on 41-of-72 pitches for strikes. A genuinely clean outing for a pitcher whose Triple-A numbers (6.88 ERA in 9 starts) have been rough since the promotion. His Double-A ERA was 2.87 across 14 starts this season, so the gap between levels is real. The slider is the carrying pitch at 55; the fastball command at 45 is what the Triple-A hitters have been targeting.
- Quinn Mathews (MLB, LHP, Rank: 11) · was recalled to St. Louis on August 22, giving the big-league staff a left-handed arm with a 120-strikeout season at Memphis. The 3.27 ERA across 99 innings at Triple-A has been the calling card; a 6.43 MLB ERA in 14 innings of earlier exposure shows the adjustment gap is real but not insurmountable for a pitcher with his strikeout profile.
- Yairo Padilla (A+, SS, Rank: 17) · was placed on the 7-day injured list by Peoria on August 21. No diagnosis has been confirmed. His last appearance came August 19, and he was hitting .281/.354/.474 across 128 plate appearances at full-season A ball before the placement.
- Colton Ledbetter (AAA, OF, Rank: 36) · went 7-for-26 with 2 doubles, 4 walks, and 10 strikeouts this week. The last-30-day line is notably better than his season baseline: .338/.395/.571 with 4 home runs across 86 PA. A 30.1 percent season K% has been the ceiling limiter, but the contact rate over the past month (73.6 percent) looks cleaner. He has 23 stolen bases on the year and enough defensive range to stay in center, which keeps the fourth-outfielder path credible.