Cards Close Out 2026 MLB Draft With Pitching, Depth and Development Bets
Cardinals Close Out 2026 MLB Draft With Pitching, Depth and Development Bets
The Cardinal Chronicle
St. Louis, MO
By Ray Mileur
The St. Louis Cardinals opened the 2026 MLB Draft with upside, athleticism and premium-position talent.
They closed it by adding pitching depth, college experience and another wave of players for the development staff to work with.
After a busy Day 1 that brought the Cardinals high school outfielder Trevor Condon, Tennessee right-hander Tegan Kuhns, high school shortstop Rocco Maniscalco, Central Florida outfielder Andrew Williamson, West Virginia right-hander Dawson Montesa, Texas Tech outfielder Caden Ferraro and Kansas State shortstop Dee Kennedy, the Cardinals came back on Day 2 and worked heavily through the pitching board.
That should not surprise anyone.
If there has been one clear organizational need for St. Louis, it has been pitching volume. Not just one arm. Not just one headline prospect. Volume. The Cardinals need starters, relievers, swingmen, late bloomers, strike throwers, power arms and enough minor-league inventory to give the system a chance to produce real major-league options.
Day 2 was about that kind of work.
Nobody should pretend that picks in Rounds 5 through 20 are sure things. They are not. This is where scouting, player development, health and patience all matter. But this is also where good organizations find useful players, especially on the mound.
Here is a rundown of the Cardinals’ Day 2 selections.
Cal Randall, RHP, UCLA
Round 5, Pick 146
The Cardinals opened Day 2 by going to UCLA for right-hander Cal Randall. That is a sensible place to start. College arms from major programs tend to come with experience, structure and enough track record to give a development staff something concrete to build from. For St. Louis, Randall represents another attempt to add pitching depth with a chance to move through the system if the command and secondary stuff hold up against professional hitters.
Owen Henne, SS, Seton Hill
Round 6, Pick 175
With their sixth-round pick, the Cardinals went off the mound and added shortstop Owen Henne out of Seton Hill. Small-school position players can be interesting Day 2 targets because the tools sometimes outpace the level of competition. Henne gives the Cardinals another middle-infield player to evaluate, and the key will be how quickly the bat adjusts once he sees professional velocity and more advanced breaking balls.
Derek Schaefer, RHP, Arizona State
Round 7, Pick 204
Derek Schaefer gives the Cardinals another college right-hander, this time from Arizona State. The theme is pretty clear by this point: bring in arms from competitive college environments and let the player development group sort through roles. Schaefer could give St. Louis another pitcher with enough background to handle a professional workload, and like many Day 2 arms, his path will depend on strike throwing and whether one pitch separates itself as a true weapon.
Luke Harrison, LHP, Texas
Round 8, Pick 234
The Cardinals added a left-handed arm in Luke Harrison out of Texas. Any time a club can add a college lefty with experience from a major program, it is worth paying attention. Harrison gives the system another southpaw option, and that matters for balance. Whether he develops as a starter, matchup reliever or multi-inning depth piece, the Cardinals need more left-handed pitching inventory throughout the system.
Jayden Lobliner, C, San Diego
Round 9, Pick 264
Jayden Lobliner adds catching depth to the organization, and that is never a bad thing. Catchers develop at different speeds, and clubs need more of them than fans often realize. Lobliner gives the Cardinals another backstop to work with defensively and offensively. The priority will be receiving, game-calling, throwing and how much offensive production he can bring as he adjusts to professional pitching.
Nick Bonn, RHP, Cal Poly
Round 10, Pick 294
Nick Bonn continued the Cardinals’ Day 2 pitching push. Taken out of Cal Poly, Bonn fits the profile of a college arm who can come into the system and give the organization another development project with some polish. These are the kinds of picks that rarely draw headlines on draft day but can become valuable if the stuff ticks up or the command takes a step forward.
Jacob Haley, RHP, South Alabama
Round 11, Pick 324
The Cardinals stayed on the mound with Jacob Haley from South Alabama. By this stage of the draft, teams are often looking for traits they believe they can improve — a delivery adjustment, a pitch-shape change, better sequencing or a strength program that helps the stuff play up. Haley gives the Cardinals another arm to put through that process.
Drew Horn, RHP, Middle Tennessee State
Round 12, Pick 354
Drew Horn is another college right-hander added to the pile, and that is not a criticism. This is exactly how organizations build depth. Most arms in this range will have to earn their role step by step, but the Cardinals clearly wanted to come out of Day 2 with more pitching options. Horn joins that group as another right-hander with a chance to carve out a path if the command and pitch mix translate.
Matthew Thomas, OF, Cal State Northridge
Round 13, Pick 384
The Cardinals went back to the position-player side with Matthew Thomas, an outfielder from Cal State Northridge. After adding several pitchers, St. Louis picked up another college bat and outfield depth piece. For Thomas, the professional question will be simple: can the bat stand out enough to create opportunity? Outfielders drafted in this range have to hit their way up the ladder, and his first full professional season will tell the Cardinals plenty.
Jaden Alba, RHP, Arizona State
Round 14, Pick 414
Jaden Alba gave the Cardinals another arm from Arizona State, marking the second Sun Devil pitcher selected by St. Louis on Day 2. Doubling up from the same program can reflect familiarity and comfort with what the scouting department saw. Alba adds to the pitching inventory and gives the Cardinals another chance to find value through development.
Brian Garmon II, RHP, South Alabama
Round 15, Pick 444
The Cardinals also doubled up on South Alabama arms, taking Brian Garmon II in the 15th round after selecting Jacob Haley earlier. Again, that says something about how the Cardinals viewed the program and the arms available. Garmon gives St. Louis another right-handed pitcher to evaluate, and the organization will now look for the pitch traits that can play in professional baseball.
Dallis Moran, RHP, Stetson
Round 16, Pick 474
Dallis Moran continued the pitching-heavy approach. Stetson has produced professional talent before, and the Cardinals added another college right-hander from that pipeline. Moran gives the club another arm to put into the system, build out physically, and test against professional hitters.
Jacob Johnson, 3B, Saint Mary’s
Round 17, Pick 504
The Cardinals shifted back to the infield with Jacob Johnson, a third baseman from Saint Mary’s. Corner infielders have to produce with the bat, so Johnson’s path will depend on impact at the plate. If he shows power and controls the strike zone, he can give the organization a useful right-handed corner option. If not, the climb becomes much harder. That is the reality of the position.
Gabe Camacho, OF, UC San Diego
Round 18, Pick 534
Gabe Camacho gives the Cardinals another college outfielder. At this stage, teams are looking for players who either have a standout carrying tool or enough overall ability to grow in the system. Camacho will have to show he can handle professional pitching and bring enough defensive or offensive value to separate himself in a crowded minor-league outfield picture.
Clayton Freshcorn, RHP, Texas A&M
Round 19, Pick 564
The Cardinals went back to the mound in the 19th round with Clayton Freshcorn from Texas A&M. There is no mystery to the appeal here: another college arm from a high-level program. Late-round pitchers can move quickly if they throw strikes and find a role. Freshcorn gives the Cardinals another piece of pitching inventory, and the organization will see where the stuff fits best.
Kollin Ritchie, OF, Oklahoma State
Round 20, Pick 594
The Cardinals closed their draft by selecting outfielder Kollin Ritchie out of Oklahoma State. That is a good way to finish the board — a college position player from a strong program with a chance to come into pro ball and compete right away. Late-round picks face long odds, but players from major college programs are used to pressure, travel and quality competition. Ritchie now gets his chance to prove the bat belongs in the professional game.
Update on the Cardinals’ 20th-round selection:
Oklahoma State outfielder Kollin Ritchie is returning to school and will not be signing with the St. Louis Cardinals after being selected with the 594th overall pick in the 2026 MLB Draft.
Ritchie was considered a more highly regarded talent than where he ultimately came off the board, so this is not a major surprise. For late-round college picks, signability always matters, and in this case, Ritchie will head back to Oklahoma State for another season rather than begin
The Bottom Line
The Cardinals’ Day 2 approach was not flashy, but it was practical.
After using Day 1 to chase upside, youth and premium traits, St. Louis used Day 2 to add pitching volume and college depth. That is a reasonable balance. The Cardinals did not need to turn every pick into a lottery-ticket high school gamble. They needed to come out of the draft with more arms, more options and more players who can help fill out a system that is being reshaped under Chaim Bloom.
The early picks will draw the headlines.
Trevor Condon gives the Cardinals five-tool upside.
Tegan Kuhns gives them a power arm.
Rocco Maniscalco gives them a young switch-hitting shortstop with defensive tools.
But drafts are not built only at the top. They are built through the middle rounds, through development wins, through arms that tick up, bats that adjust and players who outperform where they were selected.
That is what Day 2 is about.
The Cardinals added a long list of pitchers. They added more up-the-middle and outfield depth. They added catching. They added college experience. They added players who now move from names on a draft board to real members of the organization.
Now the real work begins.
The draft is only the start, it will be the development that decides the history of this year's draft.
The Cardinal Chronicle, in association with Gateway Sports & MiLB Today
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Photo Credit: Cal Randall, RHP, UCLA | MLB