Young Cardinals Backstop Ranked 21st Best Catcher In MLB For 2025

The Cardinals are going young at the catcher position.

Feb 26, 2025; Tampa, Florida, USA; St. Louis Cardinals catcher Ivan Herrera (48) warms up before the start of the spring training game against the New York Yankees at George M. Steinbrenner Field. Mandatory Credit: Jonathan Dyer-Imagn Images / Jonathan Dyer-Imagn Images

The St. Louis Cardinals are in the middle of a transitional period. Rather than trying to contend, they are looking to take a step back and give younger players a chance to prove themselves.

They even moved Willson Contreras to first base to give young catchers Ivan Herrera and Pedro Pages opportunities. Herrera figures to be the favorite to land the starting role in 2025, as he performed well at the plate last season, hitting .301 and filling in quite nicely when Contreras was out with injuries.

Bleacher Report's Joel Reuter currently ranks Herrera 21st on the top 30 catchers list heading into the 2025 season.

"The emergence of Herrera last season allowed the Cardinals to shift Willson Contreras to first base, plugging the hole left behind when Paul Goldschmidt departed in free agency," Reuter wrote. "The 24-year-old hit .301/.372/.428 for a 124 OPS with 18 extra-base hits in 72 games, though he could experience some regression with those numbers propped up by a .370 BABIP. He will also need to do a better job controlling the running game after allowing 55 steals in 59 chances."

Herrera does need to work on his defense. That is an area where Pages has a slight edge. But his bat is too good to keep out of the lineup on a daily basis.

If he can stay healthy, he should be able to secure the starting job behind the plate for St. Louis. He could also help them improve offensively after the team had a down year in 2024.

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