Cardinals Top Prospects in 2026 And Where They'll Likely Start Season

The St. Louis Cardinals have opted to rebuild their roster in the most aggressive way possible. Instead of trying to play the middle, the Cardinals entered a full scale rebuild that including four big offseason trades to send veterans to contenders in exchange for prospects.

Players like Nolan Arenado, Willson Contreras, Sonny Gray, and Brendan Donovan were moved while the Cardinals landed a haul of young prospects in return.

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As a result, the top prospects in St. Louis will be under the microscope for the next few years. Where will some of the top Cardinals prospects begin the season?

INF JJ Wetherholt: MLB

The top prospect in St. Louis is second baseman JJ Wetherholt, and he will almost certainly begin in the big leagues as the opening day second baseman. Wetherholt has seemingly been ready for the big leagues since around July or August last season. He's smashed minor league pitching every step of the way. The Brendan Donovan trade opened up second base for Wetherholt to slot in every day. This should be a no-brainer.

LHP Liam Doyle: Double-A

St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Liam Doyl — Tennessee's Liam Doyle (12) pitches against Wake Forest at the NCAA college baseball Knoxville Regional final on June 2, 2025, in Knoxville, Tenn. | Saul Young/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Cardinals top pitching prospect Liam Doyle will likely begin the season in Double-A because he ended last year at that level. Doyle made a start at Single-A and a start at Double-A last year. Both outings were a handful of innings and he looked sharp. There's a chance he begins at the High-A level, but it would make more sense to begin the dominant lefty at a level that will challenge him.

Switch pitcher Jurrangelo Cijntje: Double-A

The Cardinals landed Jurrangelo Cijntje in the Donovan trade, so he hasn't pitched an inning in the Cardinals minor league system yet. However, he's seemingly passed the High-A level after throwing nearly 100 productive innings there last season. He ended the year in Double-A, where he looked good across 33 2/3 innings. The Cardinals are in no rush to get him to the big leagues. His development is more important than anything.

LHP Quinn Mathews: Triple-A

Feb 12, 2025; Jupiter, FL, USA; St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Quinn Mathews throws during Spring Training. Mandatory Credit: Jim Rassol-Imagn Images | Jim Rassol-Imagn Images

Pitching prospect Quinn Mathews has an argument to be in the big leagues to begin the year, but the Cardinals will likely prefer the cautious route with his development. They won't gain much from rushing him to the big leagues. In fact, keeping him in the minor leagues for a chunk of the year will land the team an extra year of team control.

C Leonardo Bernal: Triple-A

Catching prospect Leonardo Bernal is in the same boat as Mathews. He could likely compete at the big league level, but the Cardinals don't need to rush him there. Gaining an extra year of team control would make more sense. Plus, the Cardinals have three or four other big league catchers ahead of him for the time being.