The St. Louis Cardinals have heard the cries of their fanbase, deciding to shake up their position player group ahead of this weekend’s series against the Chicago Cubs by calling up catcher Jimmy Crooks and outfielder Nelson Velazquez. The corresponding moves see catcher Yohel Pozo and infielder Cesar Prieto optioned to Triple-A Memphis.
To say this is a surprise would be an understatement, not because the Cardinals shouldn’t shake things up, but because it seemed like they were still at least a ways away from making a significant shift to their clubhouse like this. But here we are, and I’m sure Cardinals fans are over the moon about it.
Crooks, 24, made his Major League debut last season and has been tearing the cover off the ball in Triple-A this season, slashing .262/.412/.567 with 13 home runs and 29 RBI in just 39 games played. Crooks is a really solid defensive catcher as well, so if he is able to translate that damage at the plate in the big leagues, the Cardinals will have a really nice player on their hands.
Velazquez, who the Cardinals signed this past offseason to a minor league deal and narrowly missed out on making the Opening Day roster, got off to a slow start in Memphis this year but has been better as of late, with a .232/.344/.420 slash line to go with seven home runs and 22 RBI. Velázquez was added to the Cardinals’ 40-man roster to make this move. The Cardinals had an open spot, so no one was removed.
While some fans have clamored for Joshua Baez to get his debut after hitting five home runs and a triple over his last three games, the Cardinals seem to want to be patient with him since this is his first year in Triple-A, and he has some major swing-and-miss issues still. Just over a year ago, Baez looked like he wouldn’t even be with the organization much longer due to how bad his whiffs were, but he transformed his game last season, and after a slow start to 2026 at Triple-A, he has caught fire as of late.
Jimmy Crooks and Nelson Velazquez will be relied on to help the Cardinals with their offesnive woes
The bottom of the Cardinals’ lineup has gone ice cold as of late, so the additions of Crooks and Velazquez give the Cardinals options they can turn to in order to spark their offense in this critical series against the Cubs. It will be very interesting to see how the Cardinals deploy both of them.
On days when Ivan Herrera catches, Crooks or Velazquez could be the DH rather than shifting Nolan Gorman to that spot like they’ve done most of the year. Velazquez can also play the corner outfield, so he may draw some starts in left field while Lars Nootbaar is still out or spell Jordan Walker in right. What will be really interesting to see is how much Crooks eats into the catching rotation, with Pedro Pages currently catching three of the five starters and Herrera catching the other two (Michael McGreevy and Andre Pallante).
