The St. Louis Cardinals offically made a change at catcher on Friday afternoon.
It has been a long time coming, but Cardinals No. 7 prospect Jimmy Crooks is up in the majors. St. Louis announced the decision on Friday to promote Crooks as well as outfielder Nelson Velázquez. The timing arguably is perfect. Crooks has turned a corner down in the minors from a strikeout perspective and he’s going to give this lineup some much-needed juice.
The Cardinals demoted veteran fan favorite Yohel Pozo down to Triple-A to make room on the roster for Crooks. With Pozo down and Crooks up, there are still three catchers on the big league roster with him, Pedro Pagés, and Iván Herrera all in the majors. So, how are the Cardinals going to handle the position? John Denton of Roundtable Sports reported that Crooks will be the club’s No. 2 catcher moving forward and will get at least two starts per week. Herrera is also expected to get two starts per week with Michael McGreevy and Andre Pallante. That leaves Pagés in the No. 3 spot.
The Cardinals Made The Right Call
“Cardinals catcher Jimmy Crooks will be elevated to the club’s No. 2 catcher. Iván Herrera will continue to catch Andre Pallante and Michael McGreevy and Crooks will get at least two starts,” Denton wrote. The starter for the other rotation turn will remain fluid. Pedro Pagès now at No. 3.”
This comes roughly one week after Cardinals manager Oli Marmol said he and the club were comfortable with the team’s rotation behind the plate. Pagès is a certified professional. He’s beloved in the clubhouse and by the pitchers, but he simply hasn’t been able to hit much this season. It’s unfortunate how things have worked out. The 27-year-old has played in 35 games and is slashing .219/.262/.360 with a .622 OPS, four homers, nine RBIs, and 11 runs scored. He does all of the little things right, but the Cardinals just need more offense.
That’s what having Crooks in the lineup will do for the organization. The future is now. Crooks is getting his shot and this is important for the organization. St. Louis also has No. 2 prospect Rainiel Rodriguez and No. 5 prospect Leo Bernal as elite catcher prospects in the system. At some point, they are going to inch closer to the big leagues, So, the Cardinals need to see if Crooks can be a long-term option, or if Rodriguez or Bernal will be the long-term guy.
