Cardinals' Elite Prospect Has Been Stellar; Could He Make Big League Debut In 2024?

St. Louis fans should be excited about the club's future

The St. Louis Cardinals may have had a disappointing 2023 campaign, but the club certainly has a bright future.

St. Louis is loaded with talent and has been given some favorable odds to land a postseason spot in 2024. The Cardinals got some bad news recently with an injury to Sonny Gray, but the club still is in a good spot. 

The Cardinals should be solid in 2024 but could be even better in the years to come as some of the club's top prospects start to make the jump to the big leagues. One player who has been extremely impressive in Spring Training so far is No. 5 prospect Thomas Saggese, according to The Athletic's Jim Bowden.

"Saggese was the Rangers' fifth-round pick in 2020 out of Carlsbad (California) High," Bowden said. "The Cardinals acquired him in the Jordan Montgomery trade at last year's deadline. He played at Double-A and Triple-A last season, slashing a combined .306/.374/.530 with 34 doubles, 26 home runs, 111 RBIs, and 12 steals. This spring his high baseball IQ and instincts have stood out to the Cardinals' coaching staff.

"Oliver Marmol, manager: 'He's a student of the game and taking as much out of his time in camp as possible. He has a good idea at the plate and understands who he is.'"

Bowden compiled a list of one player from each team who has shined in camp and mentioned Saggese for the Cardinals. He is just 21 years old but already has shown great promise in the minors.

The 2023 campaign may have been a disaster for St. Louis, but it did lead the club to be sellers at the trade deadline. St. Louis traded Montgomery for Saggese and he's showing some great potential already. Who knows, maybe he even will make the jump to the big leagues in 2024? 

More MLB: Cardinals Given Favorable Odds To Make Postseason Per MLB Insider