2026 MLB Draft Review: St. Louis Cardinals

The players

Amidst a rebuild, it’s nice to have picks to play with. And the Cardinals had plenty of them in 2026, as St. Louis received two first-rounders and three second-rounders. The result was a nice mix of high school and collegiate talent.

The Cardinals’ top pick was Trevor Condon, a Georgia high schooler. From a tools standpoint, Condon is somewhat comparable to a certain outfielder roaming Wrigley Field: a twitchy outfielder who can cover ground and has shown some pop. He’s already hit well in his very brief pro career, so the sky is literally the limit on the 18-year-old.

St. Louis’ second-round pick was used on Tegan Kuhns from the University of Tennessee. Kuhns struck out 106 over 81 innings with the Volunteers. Fastball in the mid-90s with life, coupled with a changeup, slider, and curveball. A deep arsenal, which has become the norm nowadays for polished college pitchers coming out of the MLB Draft.

Kuhns was one of several notable college arms taken by St. Louis. The club took West Virginia pitcher Dawson Montesa in the second round. Montesa is a great story, as he was a D2 pitcher who transferred to West Virginia for 2026 and produced for the club, as he struck out 92 over 77 IP. The right-hander has a curveball, a slider, and a fastball with cut that he was able to work into the mid-90s late in the year.

One of the pitchers taken by the Cardinals who received a ton of attention was Cal Randall from UCLA. A reliever with the Bruins, Randall struck out 57 over 31 innings last season and could reach back into the triple digits with his fastball. He mostly sat in the upper-90s at university with his four-seamer, a pitch that played up with the angle and IVB.

Additionally, the Cardinals took Luke Harrison from Texas. Didn’t throw too hard at UT but he was very successful, as he struck out 100 over 83 innings. Derek Schaefer was one of two Arizona State relievers taken by the Cardinals. The right-handed Schaefer struck out 42 over 33 IP and pushed into the mid-90s with his fastball.

Getting back to the hitters, St. Louis took Rocco Maniscalco with one of their three second-round picks. A switch-hitting shortstop from Alabama who reclassified from the 2027 class into 2026.

Andrew Williamson is a bloodline player (he is the nephew of Sean Rodriguez) from UCF who was a consistent college hitter with the Knights. Williamson hit 29 home runs over his final two seasons with UCF and also tallied a good number of walks, with 41 over 55 games in 2026.

St. Louis dipped back into the Big 12 with two more players: Caden Ferraro & Dee Kennedy. Ferraro hit .374, along with a .481 on-base percentage, for the Texas Tech Red Raiders this past year. He walked more (39) than he struck out (36). Kennedy, meanwhile, was one of the best hitters in the D1 ranks this year, as he belted 20 home runs for the Kansas State Wildcats.

Overall, the Cardinals were able to grab plenty of talent this past summer.