The St. Louis Cardinals have one of baseball's best overall prospects in Rainiel Rodriguez and he's just going to get even more intriguing as the 2027 season approaches.
Rodriguez broke out in 2026. He made it up to Double-A at just 19 years old. Overall, he slashed .324/.413/.574 with 27 home runs and 87 RBIs in 115 games across High-A and Double-A. Rodriguez won the Texas League Batting Title with his .328 batting average in Double-A in 87 games.
He's the No. 1 prospect for the Cardinals and the No. 10 overall prospect in baseball. Offensively, there aren't many questions about Rodriguez. The biggest question is where he will play in the majors. He's a catcher, but the Cardinals are loaded at the position and Leo Bernal is in line to be the 2027 Opening Day starter. He can play first base, but Alec Burleson is the club's first baseman. Earlier in October, Rodriguez was seen taking some reps at third base, which raised some eyebrows because St. Louis is completely up in the air at the position. Cardinals president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom added more fuel to the idea and made it sound like third base is a real possibility.
“We've done some work at third,” Bloom said, as transcribed by MLB.com's Will Leitch. “I'm not going to rule out that he might get some time there.”
Rainiel Rodriguez At Third Base Would Be A Game-Changer
Very, very interesting.
Third base is the only position on the field that is a real question for St. Louis right now. Pitching is another story. But from a position standpoint, third base really is the only question mark. Thomas Saggese or Blaze Jordan are two options who got time at the spot and who could be 2027 options. Nolan Gorman technically could be an option still, although arguably that shouldn't be the case any longer, barring a massive Spring Training. The Cardinals have been waiting for Gorman to get going for years at this point.
Jesus Baez is someone who can help in the long term, but he isn't likely a 2027 Opening Day option. The same can be said about Rodriguez. But if he continues to get reps at third base — and looks good — it's only going to help his path to the majors. Again, first base and catcher are two spots that are loaded. Third base isn't as crowded, which could lead to a quicker promotion. Imagine a Cardinals lineup that has Burleson, JJ Wetherholt, Masyn Winn, Rodriguez, Joshua Baez, Jordan Walker, Nathan Church, Ivan Herrera and Bernal all in it at the same time. It's a possibility if Rodriguez can play third base in the majors.
Right now that lineup would be very good. A year — or two — from now, that could be an elite lineup full of inexpensive homegrown pieces. The idea of Rodriguez playing third base may not sound like much right now, but it's the type of move that could be a long-term game-changer.
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