Joshua Báez, Jesús Báez and Quinn Mathews Lead This Week’s List

The Cardinal Chronicle
Joshua Báez, Jesús Báez and Quinn Mathews Lead This Week’s List
St. Louis, MO
By Ray Mileur

Friday brings another look around the Cardinals’ minor league system, and this week’s Who’s Hot, Who’s Cold report comes with a little added context.

The Cardinal Chronicle’s June Top 30 prospect rankings give us a better lens for judging the week. A hot stretch from a ranked prospect carries a little more weight. A cold week from a ranked prospect deserves attention, but not panic. This is still a weekly snapshot, not a final judgment. Baseball seasons are built in layers, not seven-day verdicts. The Chronicle’s June board has Rainiel Rodriguez at No. 1, Liam Doyle at No. 2, Joshua Báez at No. 3, Tanner Franklin at No. 5, Quinn Mathews at No. 10, Cade Crossland at No. 16, Ryan Mitchell at No. 17, Mason Molina at No. 18, Jesús Báez at No. 19, Brycen Mautz at No. 14 and Braden Davis at No. 26. (Cardinal Chronicle)

Here are three hitters and three pitchers trending up, followed by three hitters and three pitchers looking to turn the page.

Who’s Hot — Hitters

Joshua Báez, CF, Memphis Redbirds
Cardinal Chronicle Ranking: No. 3

Joshua Báez keeps forcing his way into the conversation.

In five games for Triple-A Memphis, Báez went 8-for-22 with six runs, three doubles, one home run, six RBIs and two walks. He hit .364 with a 1.053 OPS.

The nine strikeouts are still part of the profile, but the production continues to outweigh the concern. Báez is doing damage at Triple-A, and that matters. When a top-three prospect is producing extra-base impact this close to St. Louis, it is no longer just a good week. It becomes part of the larger roster conversation.

Jesús Báez, SS, Peoria Chiefs
Cardinal Chronicle Ranking: No. 19

Jesús Báez had one of the loudest offensive weeks in the system.

In four games at High-A, Báez went 8-for-16 with four doubles, two home runs, seven RBIs, three walks and five runs scored. He hit .500 with a 1.704 OPS.

That is the kind of week that reminds everyone why the power has always been the carrying tool. The average has not always been where you would like it, but when Báez is driving the ball like this, the offensive ceiling shows up quickly. Four doubles and two homers in 16 at-bats is not soft contact sneaking through. That is damage.

Dakota Harris, 3B, Springfield Cardinals
Cardinal Chronicle Ranking: Not Ranked

Harris earns the third hitter spot after a strong all-around week at Double-A.

In four games for Springfield, Harris went 9-for-16 with two doubles, one triple, one home run, five RBIs, four runs and four stolen bases. He hit .563 with a 1.563 OPS.

That is a full box score. Harris hit, ran, drove in runs and added extra-base impact. He is not on the current Top 30, but weeks like this are how a player starts pushing his name into the broader discussion. Production at Double-A always deserves a second look.

Also worth noting: José Suárez had the top raw value on the hitter board after hitting .429 with three home runs, 10 RBIs and four stolen bases at High-A. Bligh Madris also had a monster week at Memphis, hitting .571 with a 1.756 OPS. Madris is not a prospect-board player in the same sense, but the production was too loud to ignore.

Who’s Hot — Pitchers

Quinn Mathews, LHP, Memphis Redbirds
Cardinal Chronicle Ranking: No. 10

This is the kind of week Mathews needed.

In six scoreless innings for Triple-A Memphis, Mathews allowed one hit, walked one and struck out nine. He finished the week with a 0.00 ERA and a 0.33 WHIP.

That is a statement outing. Mathews has had command issues this season, so the one walk is every bit as important as the nine strikeouts. The stuff has never been the concern. The question has been whether he could control the zone well enough to let the arsenal play. This week, he did exactly that.

Braden Davis, LHP, Springfield Cardinals
Cardinal Chronicle Ranking: No. 26

Davis put together one of his cleanest performances of the season.

In 5.1 scoreless innings at Double-A, he allowed three hits, walked one and struck out nine. He posted a 0.00 ERA and 0.75 WHIP.

For a pitcher ranked in the back third of the Top 30, this is exactly the kind of week that can change momentum. Davis has the strikeout ability to stay relevant, but the run prevention has not always matched the arm. This time, everything lined up. He missed bats, limited traffic and kept the scoreboard clean.

Tanner Franklin, RHP, Peoria Chiefs
Cardinal Chronicle Ranking: No. 5

Franklin keeps backing up his rise on the prospect board.

In 5.2 innings for High-A Peoria, Franklin allowed one hit, one earned run and one walk while striking out seven. He finished with a 1.59 ERA and a 0.35 WHIP.

That is not just good. That is dominant traffic control. A one-hit, one-walk outing with seven strikeouts from a Top 5 prospect is exactly what you want to see. Franklin has moved from interesting arm to legitimate system riser, and weeks like this reinforce why.

Also worth noting: Cade Crossland, ranked No. 16, struck out nine in 4.1 scoreless innings, though four walks kept him just outside the top three. Brycen Mautz, ranked No. 14, also threw four strong innings for Memphis with seven strikeouts.

Who’s Cold — Hitters

Ryan Mitchell, CF, Palm Beach Cardinals
Cardinal Chronicle Ranking: No. 17

Mitchell lands on the cold side, but this is not a write-off.

In four games for Low-A Palm Beach, Mitchell went 1-for-14 with one home run, two RBIs, four walks, two stolen bases and seven strikeouts. He hit .071 with a .563 OPS.

The average was rough, and the strikeouts were high. Still, the walks and stolen bases show he was not completely empty. That is the Mitchell profile right now: the tools are obvious, the patience is real, but the contact and overall production still have to catch up. For a ranked prospect, this is a week to reset, not a reason to panic.

Yordalin Peña, RF, Palm Beach Cardinals
Cardinal Chronicle Ranking: Not Ranked

Peña had the toughest offensive week on the board.

In four games, he went 2-for-16 with one double, no walks and seven strikeouts. He hit .125 with a .313 OPS.

That is a hard week to dress up. When a hitter is not walking and is striking out at that rate, there is not much room for offensive value. The next step is simple: control the zone, put more balls in play and stop giving pitchers quick outs.

Facundo Velásquez, LF, Palm Beach Cardinals
Cardinal Chronicle Ranking: Not Ranked

Velásquez did drive in four runs, but the overall line still lands him on the cold side.

In four games, he went 1-for-14 with one home run, four RBIs, one walk and seven strikeouts. He hit .071 with a .419 OPS.

The home run helped salvage the week, but the contact issues were hard to ignore. Seven strikeouts in 14 at-bats is the number that stands out. The power gives him something to build on, but he needs more consistent contact to avoid becoming all-or-nothing.

Who’s Cold — Pitchers

Ty Van Dyke, RHP, Peoria Chiefs
Cardinal Chronicle Ranking: Not Ranked

Van Dyke’s strikeouts kept the line from being completely empty, but the run prevention was not there.

In 4.2 innings at High-A, he allowed three hits, four earned runs, four walks and one home run while striking out seven. He finished with a 7.71 ERA and 1.50 WHIP.

The seven strikeouts show the arm is still interesting. The four walks explain why the outing got away. That is often the separator for young pitchers. Stuff gets attention, but command decides whether the inning ends cleanly or turns into a mess.

Jake Shelagowski, RHP, Palm Beach Cardinals
Cardinal Chronicle Ranking: Not Ranked

Shelagowski had the lowest value among pitchers this week.

In three innings for Low-A Palm Beach, he allowed six hits, four earned runs and two walks while striking out four. He posted a 12.00 ERA and 2.67 WHIP.

The strikeouts were there, but too much traffic came with them. Six hits and two walks in three innings is a difficult formula. This was a week to flush and move forward.

Ryan Murphy, RHP, Springfield Cardinals
Cardinal Chronicle Ranking: Not Ranked

Murphy also had a difficult week at Double-A.

In three innings for Springfield, he allowed four hits, three earned runs and four walks while striking out four. He finished with a 9.00 ERA and 2.67 WHIP.

The walks are the concern. At Double-A, free baserunners usually get punished. Murphy still missed some bats, but he spent too much of the week pitching from trouble. The fix starts with strike one.

Old School Take

This week’s report had a little bit of everything.

Joshua Báez continues to look like a Triple-A bat that belongs in the broader St. Louis conversation. Jesús Báez reminded everyone why impact power keeps him inside the Top 20. Dakota Harris, while not currently ranked, had the kind of Double-A week that earns attention.

On the mound, Quinn Mathews gave the organization exactly what it needed to see: strikeouts without the walk problem taking over. Braden Davis showed why the arm remains worth following. Tanner Franklin kept pitching like one of the fastest-rising arms in the system.

On the cold side, Mitchell’s week was rough, but the walks and athleticism still matter. The same old baseball truth applies here: a bad week is only dangerous if it becomes a bad month.

Prospect rankings are not marble tablets brought down from the mountain. They are living documents. Performance has a vote, and this week, several players made sure their names were heard.

The Cardinal Chronicle, in assoction with Gateway Sports & MiLB.com
Preserving the Past, Promoting the Present, and Projecting the Future.

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