Your Under the Radar Suggestions

[Talkin' Baseball]

Here is a challenge for the Cardinal faithful on a slow baseball day. Who can you find that could be a hidden gem for the Cardinals- someone under the radar that isn’t being talked about? Rules of engagement- must cost less than 2M in cash, or the player being sent to acquire them must be making less than 2M. By definition, these are not stars, but players who could make valuable contributions, or fill specific holes.

Here are three examples of what I am talking about: an outfielder, an infielder, and a pitcher.

An Outfielder- Marco Luciano (Giants)
He is 24 years old and was the Giants top prospect in 2021 and 2022 as a shortstop. He got 2 trial runs in SF and couldn’t cut it at short and didn’t hit. Currently he is not even a top 30 prospect for them. Last season he spent the whole season at Sacramento (AAA) playing LF and a little 1B. The Giants didn’t even call him up when they traded Yaz and their other outfielders were struggling. He is now out of options and can’t be sent back to the minors. The Giants have to either non-tender him, keep him on the ML roster, or DFA him.
Why is he interesting? He hits right-handed and the Cardinals need that. His best tool is power. Luciano has excellent bat speed and high exit velocities. He hit 23 HR last season which is more than anyone from top to bottom in the Cardinal organization. While his batting average was poor (.214) and his strikeouts abysmal (30.4%) he had a reasonable on base percentage of .335, due to a high walk rate. For reference, his OBP was higher than Winn, Walker, Gorman, Nootbaar, Pages, and Arenado. Of his 99 hits, 45 went for extra bases. He had a reasonable .748 OPS- but here is the interesting part- his OPS against left-handed pitching was .986. The Cardinals need that. Last year we had on the roster at different times Michael Siani, Garrett Hampson, Jose Barrero, and Ryan Vilade. I would rather take a chance on someone like this.

An Infielder-Ty France (FA)
Primarily a 1B, he has also played some 2B and 3B. He won a GG at 1B this season. At different times in his career he has shown some pop in his bat. He would be interesting if the Cardinals traded more players than they thought they would, for instance if they were to trade Contreras and Burleson (or even just Contreras). He could be a one year bridge without being a black hole on offense or defense. Spotrac estimates his next contract to be an AAV of 1.6M.

A Pitcher-RJ Petit (Tigers)
Petit is a BIG boy. He is a 6’8” 300 lb relief pitcher. He is a 26 year-old pitching at AAA. He touches 98 mph on the gun and has an excellent slider. This year at AAA he struck out 79 in 66.1 innings. He had a WHIP of 1.06. The Tigers needed to roster him last year to protect him from the Rule V draft and didn’t. They will need to do that this season, or risk losing him. So far they haven’t. If they don’t, I would pick him up. We have room on our ML bullpen to keep him up all season.

What do you think of those? What suggestions do you have?

[rockondlouie]

I usually have a thought when it comes to under the radar suggestions (I nailed the Goldy trade idea the last day of the 2018 season long before it was even rumored).

But this coming offseason I'm clueless since I don't know how much payroll money BDWJr is going to give C. Bloom to work with.

Could be as low as a sub -$100M payroll?

or

Will it be closer to the $135M range?

Great topic TB, I'll return after the GM meetings with some thoughts.

[brock118]

This is one that is definitely under the radar. This is from MLBTradrumors.com that has a list of the top 50 free agents. And not surprisingly this is the only one that any of them predicted signing with the Cardinals.

CODY PONCE SP ESTIMATED 2 YEARS $22 MILLION

Tim: White Sox / Anthony: Cardinals / Darragh: Brewers / Steve: Giants

Probably a surprise entrant on the list for many readers, Ponce is a relative unknown to the general MLB fan base but is firmly on the radar of big league scouts. The former Brewers second-rounder pitched briefly in the majors with the Pirates from 2020-21 but was roughed up for a 5.86 ERA in 55 1/3 MLB frames.

Ponce has spent the past four seasons pitching in Asia, spending the 2022-24 campaigns in Japan before pitching for the Hanwha Eagles of the Korea Baseball Organization in 2025. The right-hander posted strong numbers with the Nippon-Ham Fighters in 2022-23, struggled with the Rakuten Golden Eagles in 2024, and broke out with one of the most dominant pitching performances in KBO history this past season.

Ponce, 32 next April, logged 180 2/3 innings with a 1.89 ERA out of the Hanwha rotation in 2025. He fanned an incredible 36.2% of his opponents against just a 5.9% walk rate. The huge 6’6″, 255-pound righty piled up 252 strikeouts overall — shattering the previous record of 225. (The KBO plays a 144-game season, as compared to MLB’s 162-game slate, it should be noted.) He also set the KBO’s single-game strikeout record when he set down 18 batters on strikes versus the SSG Landers back in May.

Ponce sat 93.2 mph with his four-seamer during his MLB days, but he’s added velocity and now sits around 95-96, occasionally climbing as high as 98 mph. He pairs the improved heater with a cutter, changeup and curveball, the latter two of which both miss bats at an above-average level.

The breakout showing for Ponce has some parallels to that of Erick Fedde a few years ago, though Ponce’s prior NPB success in 2022-23 is something that Fedde didn’t have on his track record. Scouts who spoke to MLBTR opined that Fedde had better command but Ponce offers more upside and much better weapons to miss bats in the majors. He’ll be a year older than Fedde was when he made his MLB return, but we’re betting that Ponce can still top Fedde’s overall guarantee, and a third year might not be entirely out of the question.

[bretto12]

I have zero faith in a player coming from the Korean league. I place it about AA in the US. So I'll pass on him.

[billybaseball]

Liam Hendriks. May not have anything left but I'd love to see him get a shot here. Was the best reliever in baseball at one point. He just hasn't been able to stay healthy after the cancer scare.

[kyace]

Getting some former top pitching prospects coming off injuries is where I would get started.
Hampton from the Yankees and River Ryan from the Dodgers. Both former top 5 team prospects coming off TJ last year. Both teams have excess pitching so should be available.

[Talkin' Baseball]

Getting some former top pitching prospects coming off injuries is where I would get started.
Hampton from the Yankees and River Ryan from the Dodgers. Both former top 5 team prospects coming off TJ last year. Both teams have excess pitching so should be available.

River Ryan would be one of my favorite targets this winter. As you say, he is coming off injury and they have no place for him. He will be 27 next season. Who is he pushing out of their rotation?

[scoutyjones2]

Here is a challenge for the Cardinal faithful on a slow baseball day. Who can you find that could be a hidden gem for the Cardinals- someone under the radar that isn’t being talked about? Rules of engagement- must cost less than 2M in cash, or the player being sent to acquire them must be making less than 2M. By definition, these are not stars, but players who could make valuable contributions, or fill specific holes.

Here are three examples of what I am talking about: an outfielder, an infielder, and a pitcher.

An Outfielder- Marco Luciano (Giants)
He is 24 years old and was the Giants top prospect in 2021 and 2022 as a shortstop. He got 2 trial runs in SF and couldn’t cut it at short and didn’t hit. Currently he is not even a top 30 prospect for them. Last season he spent the whole season at Sacramento (AAA) playing LF and a little 1B. The Giants didn’t even call him up when they traded Yaz and their other outfielders were struggling. He is now out of options and can’t be sent back to the minors. The Giants have to either non-tender him, keep him on the ML roster, or DFA him.
Why is he interesting? He hits right-handed and the Cardinals need that. His best tool is power. Luciano has excellent bat speed and high exit velocities. He hit 23 HR last season which is more than anyone from top to bottom in the Cardinal organization. While his batting average was poor (.214) and his strikeouts abysmal (30.4%) he had a reasonable on base percentage of .335, due to a high walk rate. For reference, his OBP was higher than Winn, Walker, Gorman, Nootbaar, Pages, and Arenado. Of his 99 hits, 45 went for extra bases. He had a reasonable .748 OPS- but here is the interesting part- his OPS against left-handed pitching was .986. The Cardinals need that. Last year we had on the roster at different times Michael Siani, Garrett Hampson, Jose Barrero, and Ryan Vilade. I would rather take a chance on someone like this.

An Infielder-Ty France (FA)
Primarily a 1B, he has also played some 2B and 3B. He won a GG at 1B this season. At different times in his career he has shown some pop in his bat. He would be interesting if the Cardinals traded more players than they thought they would, for instance if they were to trade Contreras and Burleson (or even just Contreras). He could be a one year bridge without being a black hole on offense or defense. Spotrac estimates his next contract to be an AAV of 1.6M.

A Pitcher-RJ Petit (Tigers)
Petit is a BIG boy. He is a 6’8” 300 lb relief pitcher. He is a 26 year-old pitching at AAA. He touches 98 mph on the gun and has an excellent slider. This year at AAA he struck out 79 in 66.1 innings. He had a WHIP of 1.06. The Tigers needed to roster him last year to protect him from the Rule V draft and didn’t. They will need to do that this season, or risk losing him. So far they haven’t. If they don’t, I would pick him up. We have room on our ML bullpen to keep him up all season.

What do you think of those? What suggestions do you have?

no thank you on all of them

[Talkin' Baseball]

Here is a challenge for the Cardinal faithful on a slow baseball day. Who can you find that could be a hidden gem for the Cardinals- someone under the radar that isn’t being talked about? Rules of engagement- must cost less than 2M in cash, or the player being sent to acquire them must be making less than 2M. By definition, these are not stars, but players who could make valuable contributions, or fill specific holes.

Here are three examples of what I am talking about: an outfielder, an infielder, and a pitcher.

An Outfielder- Marco Luciano (Giants)
He is 24 years old and was the Giants top prospect in 2021 and 2022 as a shortstop. He got 2 trial runs in SF and couldn’t cut it at short and didn’t hit. Currently he is not even a top 30 prospect for them. Last season he spent the whole season at Sacramento (AAA) playing LF and a little 1B. The Giants didn’t even call him up when they traded Yaz and their other outfielders were struggling. He is now out of options and can’t be sent back to the minors. The Giants have to either non-tender him, keep him on the ML roster, or DFA him.
Why is he interesting? He hits right-handed and the Cardinals need that. His best tool is power. Luciano has excellent bat speed and high exit velocities. He hit 23 HR last season which is more than anyone from top to bottom in the Cardinal organization. While his batting average was poor (.214) and his strikeouts abysmal (30.4%) he had a reasonable on base percentage of .335, due to a high walk rate. For reference, his OBP was higher than Winn, Walker, Gorman, Nootbaar, Pages, and Arenado. Of his 99 hits, 45 went for extra bases. He had a reasonable .748 OPS- but here is the interesting part- his OPS against left-handed pitching was .986. The Cardinals need that. Last year we had on the roster at different times Michael Siani, Garrett Hampson, Jose Barrero, and Ryan Vilade. I would rather take a chance on someone like this.

An Infielder-Ty France (FA)
Primarily a 1B, he has also played some 2B and 3B. He won a GG at 1B this season. At different times in his career he has shown some pop in his bat. He would be interesting if the Cardinals traded more players than they thought they would, for instance if they were to trade Contreras and Burleson (or even just Contreras). He could be a one year bridge without being a black hole on offense or defense. Spotrac estimates his next contract to be an AAV of 1.6M.

A Pitcher-RJ Petit (Tigers)
Petit is a BIG boy. He is a 6’8” 300 lb relief pitcher. He is a 26 year-old pitching at AAA. He touches 98 mph on the gun and has an excellent slider. This year at AAA he struck out 79 in 66.1 innings. He had a WHIP of 1.06. The Tigers needed to roster him last year to protect him from the Rule V draft and didn’t. They will need to do that this season, or risk losing him. So far they haven’t. If they don’t, I would pick him up. We have room on our ML bullpen to keep him up all season.

What do you think of those? What suggestions do you have?

no thank you on all of them

Scouty, I expected nothing less from you.

[Hoosier59]

If he is healthy again, then maybe Chas McCormick formally of the Astros. Bats right handed, and plays CF.
Also Phil Maton on another 1 year deal, with the possibility of an option year.

[ScotchMIrish]

That's where the scouting and development parts of a franchise pay dividends. People whose name most of us don't know. Great example the Alcantara/Gallen deal. Miami scouted them and correctly assessed their value. Our franchise watching them every game didn't.

Another even more lopsided deal was Shelby Miller for Inciarte and Swanson. In that case it was LaRussa's preference for winning now with veterans he was familiar with over developing a prospect. Swanson was hardly under the radar. As it turned out Miller flopped in Arizona and Inciarte alone would have been a bad trade. Add Swanson and LaRussa's time running the diamondbacks was over.

[Kljwhite]

Miguel Andujar 318 average 10 Hr 17 2b 44 rbi 321AB

[scoutyjones2]

Here is a challenge for the Cardinal faithful on a slow baseball day. Who can you find that could be a hidden gem for the Cardinals- someone under the radar that isn’t being talked about? Rules of engagement- must cost less than 2M in cash, or the player being sent to acquire them must be making less than 2M. By definition, these are not stars, but players who could make valuable contributions, or fill specific holes.

Here are three examples of what I am talking about: an outfielder, an infielder, and a pitcher.

An Outfielder- Marco Luciano (Giants)
He is 24 years old and was the Giants top prospect in 2021 and 2022 as a shortstop. He got 2 trial runs in SF and couldn’t cut it at short and didn’t hit. Currently he is not even a top 30 prospect for them. Last season he spent the whole season at Sacramento (AAA) playing LF and a little 1B. The Giants didn’t even call him up when they traded Yaz and their other outfielders were struggling. He is now out of options and can’t be sent back to the minors. The Giants have to either non-tender him, keep him on the ML roster, or DFA him.
Why is he interesting? He hits right-handed and the Cardinals need that. His best tool is power. Luciano has excellent bat speed and high exit velocities. He hit 23 HR last season which is more than anyone from top to bottom in the Cardinal organization. While his batting average was poor (.214) and his strikeouts abysmal (30.4%) he had a reasonable on base percentage of .335, due to a high walk rate. For reference, his OBP was higher than Winn, Walker, Gorman, Nootbaar, Pages, and Arenado. Of his 99 hits, 45 went for extra bases. He had a reasonable .748 OPS- but here is the interesting part- his OPS against left-handed pitching was .986. The Cardinals need that. Last year we had on the roster at different times Michael Siani, Garrett Hampson, Jose Barrero, and Ryan Vilade. I would rather take a chance on someone like this.

An Infielder-Ty France (FA)
Primarily a 1B, he has also played some 2B and 3B. He won a GG at 1B this season. At different times in his career he has shown some pop in his bat. He would be interesting if the Cardinals traded more players than they thought they would, for instance if they were to trade Contreras and Burleson (or even just Contreras). He could be a one year bridge without being a black hole on offense or defense. Spotrac estimates his next contract to be an AAV of 1.6M.

A Pitcher-RJ Petit (Tigers)
Petit is a BIG boy. He is a 6’8” 300 lb relief pitcher. He is a 26 year-old pitching at AAA. He touches 98 mph on the gun and has an excellent slider. This year at AAA he struck out 79 in 66.1 innings. He had a WHIP of 1.06. The Tigers needed to roster him last year to protect him from the Rule V draft and didn’t. They will need to do that this season, or risk losing him. So far they haven’t. If they don’t, I would pick him up. We have room on our ML bullpen to keep him up all season.

What do you think of those? What suggestions do you have?

no thank you on all of them

Scouty, I expected nothing less from you.

Glad to oblige

[12xu]

Miguel Andujar 318 average 10 Hr 17 2b 44 rbi 321AB

He is the OF they should target - can also play 3B, but he will cost more than $2 MM. 30 year old RHH, had a big season with Yanks in '18, had many injuries but finally got healthy last year for Reds and A's.

[ilcubuffs]

Jake Bird - NY Yanks. RH/RP. Made $770,000 in 20205. 4 yrs MLB experience. Arb eligible. Should avg a SO per inning. WHIP 1.4 - 1.5. Less than stellar 2nd half w/Yanks. Could be due for rebound season.

[Carp4Cy]

Here is a challenge for the Cardinal faithful on a slow baseball day. Who can you find that could be a hidden gem for the Cardinals- someone under the radar that isn’t being talked about? Rules of engagement- must cost less than 2M in cash, or the player being sent to acquire them must be making less than 2M. By definition, these are not stars, but players who could make valuable contributions, or fill specific holes.

Here are three examples of what I am talking about: an outfielder, an infielder, and a pitcher.

An Outfielder- Marco Luciano (Giants)
He is 24 years old and was the Giants top prospect in 2021 and 2022 as a shortstop. He got 2 trial runs in SF and couldn’t cut it at short and didn’t hit. Currently he is not even a top 30 prospect for them. Last season he spent the whole season at Sacramento (AAA) playing LF and a little 1B. The Giants didn’t even call him up when they traded Yaz and their other outfielders were struggling. He is now out of options and can’t be sent back to the minors. The Giants have to either non-tender him, keep him on the ML roster, or DFA him.
Why is he interesting? He hits right-handed and the Cardinals need that. His best tool is power. Luciano has excellent bat speed and high exit velocities. He hit 23 HR last season which is more than anyone from top to bottom in the Cardinal organization. While his batting average was poor (.214) and his strikeouts abysmal (30.4%) he had a reasonable on base percentage of .335, due to a high walk rate. For reference, his OBP was higher than Winn, Walker, Gorman, Nootbaar, Pages, and Arenado. Of his 99 hits, 45 went for extra bases. He had a reasonable .748 OPS- but here is the interesting part- his OPS against left-handed pitching was .986. The Cardinals need that. Last year we had on the roster at different times Michael Siani, Garrett Hampson, Jose Barrero, and Ryan Vilade. I would rather take a chance on someone like this.

An Infielder-Ty France (FA)
Primarily a 1B, he has also played some 2B and 3B. He won a GG at 1B this season. At different times in his career he has shown some pop in his bat. He would be interesting if the Cardinals traded more players than they thought they would, for instance if they were to trade Contreras and Burleson (or even just Contreras). He could be a one year bridge without being a black hole on offense or defense. Spotrac estimates his next contract to be an AAV of 1.6M.

A Pitcher-RJ Petit (Tigers)
Petit is a BIG boy. He is a 6’8” 300 lb relief pitcher. He is a 26 year-old pitching at AAA. He touches 98 mph on the gun and has an excellent slider. This year at AAA he struck out 79 in 66.1 innings. He had a WHIP of 1.06. The Tigers needed to roster him last year to protect him from the Rule V draft and didn’t. They will need to do that this season, or risk losing him. So far they haven’t. If they don’t, I would pick him up. We have room on our ML bullpen to keep him up all season.

What do you think of those? What suggestions do you have?

no thank you on all of them

Some poster here is going to have a problem with every player on every roster - usually that will be Scouty.