Jacob Odle’s Power Arm Is Pushing Its Way Onto the Radar

 
The Cardinal Chronicle
In the Spotlight: Jacob Odle’s Power Arm Is Pushing Its Way Onto the Radar
St. Louis, MO
By Ray Mileur

Jacob Odle is starting to look like more than just another arm working his way through the lower levels of the Cardinals’ system.

The 22-year-old right-hander has opened the 2026 season at Single-A Palm Beach with the kind of numbers that force a second look. Through his first 30 innings, Odle owns a 1.80 ERA with 43 strikeouts against 14 walks, giving the Cardinals another intriguing power arm in a system that has spent much of the spring watching young pitching begin to separate itself.

Odle’s last three starts have been even sharper. Over 15 innings, he has allowed just one run while striking out 23 and walking five. That is not just surviving the Florida State League. That is taking the ball, missing bats and beginning to show the kind of dominance that usually leads to the next phone call.

And the stuff is beginning to match the results.

In his most recent outing Tuesday, Odle induced 16 swings and misses on 77 pitches and reached 99.6 mph. That kind of velocity gets attention at any level, but it becomes even more interesting when it comes from a 6-foot-5 right-hander who appears to be learning how to better harness the power in his frame.

There are still parts of the profile that need polish. Odle is a little older for the Florida State League, and the 10.9 percent walk rate is a reminder that command remains part of the development process. Power arms can climb quickly, but they usually do not climb cleanly unless the strike-throwing continues to improve.

Still, there is no denying the direction this is headed.

Odle was selected by the Cardinals in the 14th round of the 2023 draft out of Orange Coast College, and at 6-foot-5 and 210 pounds, he has always carried the look of a pitcher with physical upside. The difference now is that the production is beginning to line up with the projection.

For Palm Beach, he has not merely been filling innings. He has been overpowering hitters. The strikeout total tells one part of the story. The whiffs tell another. The fastball touching the upper 90s adds the loudest punctuation mark.

The Cardinals do not need to rush every arm in the system, but Odle is making the High-A conversation harder to ignore. Peoria should be the next stop, and if he keeps throwing strikes with this kind of stuff, that promotion may come sooner rather than later.

For now, Jacob Odle has become one of those lower-level names worth circling in ink instead of pencil.

Old School Take

Velocity gets a pitcher noticed. Command keeps him moving.

Odle has the arm. That much is obvious. When a right-hander is touching 99.6 mph and missing bats at this rate, there is no need to dress it up. The stuff plays.

But the next step is the old one. Get ahead. Finish hitters. Make the fastball work in the zone. Trust the defense when needed. Walks are often the difference between a power arm and a pitcher.

Right now, Odle looks like a power arm learning how to pitch. That is exactly the kind of player development story worth watching.

The Cardinal Chronicle, in association with Gateway Sports