Cardinals Take Flier on 18-Year-Old Pitching Prospect on MiLB Deal

The St. Louis Cardinals added another minor league lottery ticket to the farm system.

Sep 17, 2018; Atlanta, GA, USA; Detailed view of a St. Louis Cardinals hat and glove in the dugout against the Atlanta Braves in the first inning at SunTrust Park. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

The St. Louis Cardinals have another young hurler in the organization.

On Wednesday, popular X account Redbird Farmhands shared on X that St. Louis officially signed 18-year-old right-handed pitcher Jhon Cabrera to a minor league deal.

"The Cardinals have officially signed RHP Jhon Cabrera (18) to a minor league deal. Listed at 6’0 180 pounds Cabrera trained at Blanco Baseball Academy in the Dominican Republic."

The Cardinals have officially signed RHP Jhon Cabrera (18) to a minor league deal

Listed at 6’0 180 pounds Cabrera trained at Blanco Baseball Academy in the Dominican Republic. https://t.co/UGWCvngmmF

— Redbird Farmhands (@RedbirdFarmhand) June 18, 2026

The Cardinals Made Another MiLB Move

Feb 26, 2021; Jupiter, Florida, USA; A general view of the St. Louis Cardinals logo on the stadium at Roger Dean Stadium during spring training workouts. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-Imagn Images | Jasen Vinlove-Imagn Images

This move has been reflected on his official MiLB.com profile. He was signed officially to a minor league deal on Tuesday and then was assigned to the DSL Cardinals on Wednesday.

This is the second time over just the last week that the Cardinals have taken a chance on a little-known hurler. On Saturday, the Cardinals announced that they signed former Indy ball left-handed hurler Nathan Shinn to a minor league deal and assigned him to Class-A Palm Beach. Shinn is a hurler who hadn't pitched in a big league or minor league game as of his signing.

Cabrera fits this description as well. For Shinn, he's a 22-year-old who pitched for San Francisco State in college and had Indy Ball experience before coming to the Cardinals' organization. He made his minor league debut with Palm Beach and tossed a scoreless inning.

Cabrera doesn't have that experience to look back on. He's an 18-year-old hurler out of Santiago de los Caballeros, Dominican Republic. He's listed at 6'0'' and 180 pounds and trained at the Blanco Baseball Academy in the Dominican Republic.

This type of move is one that fans likely won't feel the impact for a long time, if at all. He'll join the DSL Cardinals now as he begins his journey in professional baseball. This is the first step for a lot of young guys when they make their way to professional baseball, especially as young as he is. The season for the DSL Cardinals will run through Aug. 18. Moves like this don't move the needle right now, but add more depth to the organization. One thing that is also true is the fact that Chaim Bloom has proven over and over throughout his professional baseball career that he can build a farm system. With a move like this, it's a dice roll that hopefully will work out one day in the future. It's going to be a long road, but Cabrera is now another hurler for fans to know in the minors.