By Rob Rains
Three of the Cardinals minor-league affiliates will begin their seasons on Friday night but several top prospects are opening the year on the injured list.
In addition to right-hander Tink Hence, on the injured list for Triple A Memphis because of a rib cage strain, pitchers Cooper Hjerpe (Springfield), Chen-Wei Lin (Peoria) and Brian Holiday (Palm Beach) also have been placed on the injured list.
One pitcher who is finally healthy after dealing with injuries the last two seasons, Tekoah Roby, will get the start for Springfield in its season-opener against Wichita.
Both Peoria and Palm Beach also will open at home on Friday night. The Memphis Redbirds began their season last week.
Here is a team-by-team look at where some of the organization’s other top prospects are opening the season:
Memphis – Pitcher Quinn Mathews will make his second start of the season on Friday night for the Redbirds. Michael McGreevy and Gordon Graceffo also are in the team’s rotation and catcher Jimmy Crooks was promoted from Springfield. Thomas Saggese is also back in Memphis after making his major-league debut last year.
Springfield – In addition to Roby and Hjerpe, top prospect JJ Wetherholt will be at Springfield as he was promoted directly to Double A from Palm Beach, skipping High A Peoria, less than a year after he was the Cardinals’ first-round pick in the amateur draft. Outfielder Chase Davis, the top pick in 2023, also begins his first season in Springfield as will catcher Leo Bernal and right-hander Max Rajcic.
Peoria – In addition to Lin, the High A roster includes pitchers Darlin Saladin and Zack Showalter. Catcher Ryan Campos also was promoted after playing in Palm Beach following last year’s draft. Outfielder Won-bin Cho returns to Peoria but will begin the year on the IL.
Palm Beach – Outfielder Travis Honeyman, who has battled injuries the last two years, will begin this season on the injured list again. Pitchers Nelfy Ynfante and Leonel Sequera should head the rotation on a roster filled with many players selected in the 2024 draft, including righthander Andrew Dutkanych, who will begin the year on the IL as he recovers from Tommy John surgery.
Not assigned – Among the top prospects who were not placed on a full-season roster are shortstop Yairo Padilla, catcher Rainiel Rodriguez and pitcher Brannell Franco and Kei version Ramirez, who will play either for the Florida Complex League or in the Dominican Summer League when those seasons begin later this spring.
Here are the complete opening-day rosters for the four full-season affiliates:
