The 2025 season could not have gotten off to a much better start for Rainiel Rodriguez.
Signed by the St. Louis Cardinals as an international free agent in spring of 2024, the 18-year-old catcher from Pimentel, Dominican Republic blasted 10 home runs with 38 RBIs in 41 games in the Dominican Summer League last year. So far in 36 at bats over 12 games this month in the Florida Complex League, Rodriguez already has six homers and 11 RBIs.
Listed at 5-foot-10, 197 pounds, Rodriguez has reached base in every game for the FCL-Cardinals so far, posting a slash line of .389/.531/.944 with a ridiculous OPS of 1.475. He has nine walks and nine strikeouts this season, after compiling 30 walks against 25 strikeouts over 184 plate appearances in 2024.
Although it’s a small sample size, Rodriguez’s start has gained plenty of attention. He was ranked the top prospect on Baseball America’s Hot Sheet for the week of May 12-18 after slashing 438/.500/1.188 (7-for-16) with four homers, eight RBIs and six runs scored, prompting this assessment from Baseball America’s Josh Norris:
“In 41 games last year in the Dominican Summer League, Rodriguez slammed 10 home runs. In 10 games this year in the Florida Complex League, he’s already got six. Half of his 12 hits have landed somewhere over the fence. He closed the week with long balls in four straight games. His six home runs are more than double the next-closest contender in the FCL and are just four away from the total that led the league last year. If he keeps going deep every day, chances are good he won’t be around long enough to challenge last year’s high-water mark.”
On a recent episode of “The Dynasty Dugout” podcast, Chris Clegg had similar high praise for Rodriguez. While acknowledging the low number of plate appearances, Clegg noted that a coach who has worked with Rodriguez described him as “a Ferrari,” and so far, “Rodriguez looks the part,” with a 239 wRC+ (Weighted Runs Created Plus) as of May 15 that was the second-best mark in all of baseball.
“There's power, there's contact ability,” Clegg said. “It's really, really good stuff.”
Joshua Baez Enjoying Bounce-Back Season for Peoria
April was a rough month for the High-A Peoria Chiefs.
The team lost its first seven games of the season, then closed out the month by dropping five of six. Two more losses in the first games of May lowered the team’s record to 6-18, but the Chiefs have rebounded to win 10 of their last 14 games.
The latest game on Tuesday, as Peoria blasted seven home runs in a 12-5 win over Dayton. Two of those homers came off the bat of right fielder Joshua Baez, who went 4-for-4 with four RBIs and three runs scored. It was the sixth consecutive multi-hit game for the Cardinals’ second-round pick in 2021, who boosted his slash line to .336/.420/.520 with a .940 OPS.
It’s been a bounce-back season so far for Baez, who was ranked as high as 12th among the Cardinals’ prospects in 2023 but got dropped completely from the top-30 list after finishing the 2023 season with a .218 average for Single-A Palm Beach, then batting just .225 over 71 games at Peoria last summer.
“I had days where I didn’t know what to do, honestly,” Baez said. “I felt like coming from high school as a second-rounder I felt like I had to do everything in one month or one year. That was where I got lost … It’s definitely been a roller coaster.”
Still just 21 years old, the 6-3, 220-pounder from Boston has learned to trust in his abilities, and they have been shining this season. Baez has hit seven doubles, two triples and four home runs with 23 RBIs through 33 games, and he also has 18 stolen bases, which leads all players in the Cardinals’ organization.
“He finally is understanding how to perform at the professional level – how to take care of his routine, take care of his body, take care of his offensive and his defensive work,” said Peoria manager Roberto Espinoza. “He’s finally putting everything together.”
Another offensive standout for Peoria has been left fielder Ian Petrutz, who in his second pro season has posted a slash line of .307/.390/.466.
Nathan Church Goes on Hot Streak at Springfield
At Double-A Springfield, outfielder Nathan Church has been on a hot streak throughout all of May.
An 11th-round pick in 2022, Church opened the season on the 7-day injured list, then played four rehab games for Palm Beach, getting two hits in 13 at bats. He rejoined Springfield on April 22 but started off slow, going 5-for-21 through his first five games.
However, since flipping the page on the calendar, the Cardinals’ No. 21 prospect has found his stroke, with 24 hits in 61 May at bats. Church has gone 11-for-19 in the last five games, raising his slash line to .326/.360/.558, and overall at Springfield, he has seven doubles, four home runs and 11 RBIs in 20 games, with just seven strikeouts.
Tink Hence to Begin Rehab Assignment Tonight
One of the Cardinals' top prospects is scheduled to make his 2025 debut.
On Wednesday morning, the Cardinals Player Development office announced on its X (formerly Twitter) account that No. 3 prospect Tink Hence will begin a rehab assignment with a start for Single-A Palm Beach tonight against Daytona.
Hence was placed on the minor league 60-day injured list by Triple-A Memphis in late March with a right rib cage strain.