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Two Cardinals Catching Prospects Soar Up Final Top 100 Rankings of '26
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- Two Cardinals Catching Prospects Soar Up Final Top 100 Rankings of '26
Roundtable Sports' John Denton breaks down the rise of catching prospects Rainiel Rodriguez and Leo Bernal, who made major climbs up the MLB Pipeline final Top 100 Prospect rankings of 2026.
While unveiling their final Minor League prospect ranking of 2026, MLB Pipeline finally realized something that St. Louis Cardinals fans have long known: Rainiel Rodriguez and Leo Bernal are the best catching prospects in all baseball.
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Rodriguez, 19, jumped from No. 16 to No. 10 in the MLB Pipeline rankings for his first appearance inside the Top 10 prospect list. Bernal, who dazzled with the Cardinals in 24 games in September, is still carrying a prospect designation and he was the highest climber in the latest rankings, moving up 19 spots from No. 99 to No. 80.
Four Cardinals made MLB Pipeline's final Top 100 prospects list for 2026 : Rodriguez (No. 10), left-handed pitcher Liam Doyle (No. 40). Cardinals' outfielder and MLB record-breaker Joshua Baez (No. 57) and Bernal (No. 80).
Bernal's recent entry into the MLB Pipeline Top 100 rankings was important because it is one of the criteria for a team to earn draft compensation if a player goes on to win the Rookie of the Year award. Bernal, 22, will carry his rookie status into the 2027 season, and if he can repeat what he did in September over a full season, he could become the first Cardinals' player to win the National League's Rookie of the Year award since Albert Pujols did it in 2001.
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With the Cardinals following an Aug. 31 promotion, Bernal slashed .284/.333/.474/.807 with three doubles, five homers and 21 RBI in 24 games. He drove in two runs in his MLB debut, he homered in his second game and he hit a go-ahead, two-run homer in his final at bat at Busch Stadium against the Nationals on Sept. 20.
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Rodriguez earned his climb into the Top 10 by slashing .324/.413/.574/.987 with 30 doubles, 27 homers, 87 RBI and 11 stolen bases in 115 games split between High-A Peoria (28 games) and Double-A Springfield (87 games). Rodriguez, a 5-foot-10, 197-pounder, led Springfield to a Double-A-best second-half record of 47-22, a 2-0 sweep of Tulsa (Dodgers) in the North Division playoff series and a spot opposite Amarillo (Dbacks) in the Texas League championship series. He crushed a two-run homer in the third inning of the deciding Game 3.
The second youngest position player in Double-A, Rodriguez hit .328 with 22 doubles, 23 homers and 66 RBI with Springfield after being promoted from High-A Peoria on May 12. He became just fourth teenager to hit at least 23 homers at Double-A joining Delmon Young (26 in 2005) and current MLB superstars Bryce Harper (23 in 2012) and Juan Soto (24 in 2018). Also, he is just the fourth teenager with a wRC+ of at least 150 at Double-A over the past 20 years, joining Vladimir Guerrero, Mike Trout and Justin Upton.
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A likely promotion to Triple-A Memphis next season, Rodriguez finished with a flurry in Double-A. Over his final 36 games and 168 plate appearances of the regular season, Rodriguez slashed .417/.482/.806/1.288 with 14 homers and 16 walks.
Doyle, the No. 5 pick of the 2025 MLB Draft, shook off a slow start in the hitter-friendly Texas League and finished 7-7 with a 3.76 ERA in 23 starts. Using his overpowering fastball and flashing better command on his secondary stuff, Doyle struck out 130 hitters in 103 innings of work. Like Rodriguez, Doyle represented the Cardinals in the MLB Futures Game in Philadelphia in July.
How many players can say that they hit 34 homers and even featured a four-home run night in the Minor Leagues and neither was their top moment of the season? The 6-foot-3, 220-pound Baez, 23, announced himself to the baseball world by smashing a record three homers in his first three MLB at bats at historic Wrigley Field on Aug. 15.
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Baez played 29 games with the Cardinals before straining an oblique to end his 2026 season. He hit .230 with seven doubles, seven homers and 18 RBI. His on-base percentage plummeted to .278 with 33 strikeouts compared to just four walks.
