MLB Pipeline Releases St. Louis Cardinals Prospect Rankings for 2017

There weren’t too many surprises in MLB Pipeline’s new Cardinals prospect rankings.

MLB Pipeline, the division of MLB.com dedicated to the coverage of international, draft-eligible, and minor-league prospects, has been unveiling its new top 30 prospects lists for each MLB organization, and they released their Cardinals list on Thursday morning. Since Pipeline updates its rankings throughout the year, there wasn’t a tremendous amount of change in terms of the players who rank within the top 30, though there was some interesting movement throughout.

Hard-throwing righty Alex Reyes still ranks as the organization’s top prospect, even though he’ll miss the entire 2017 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery. Catcher Carson Kelly made one of the biggest jumps, moving from No. 11 on last year’s season-ending list to second on the initial 2017 list.

Righthander Luke Weaver, who was second on last year’s list, moves back to third on this year’s rankings, and he’s followed by the Cardinals’ top draft pick in 2016, shortstop Delvin Perez, who moved up one spot. The top 10 is rounded out by outfielder Harrison Bader, righty Sandy Alcantara, outfielder Magneuris Sierra, and righthanders Jack Flaherty, Dakota Hudson, and Junior Fernandez.

Next: Sandy Alcantara Could Pitch for Cardinals in 2017

Players who made the 2017 list after being unranked on the final 2016 list include second baseman Eliezer Alvarez (12), righthanded pitchers Jordan Hicks (18) and Alvaro Seijas (20), and Johan Oviedo (27), and catcher Jeremy Martinez (30). Players who fell off the list included outfielder Victor Garcia, righthanded pitchers Andrew Morales and Trey Nielsen, and lefty Corey Littrell (who recently received a 50-game drug suspension).