Cardinals Already Have Next Ace Emerging Under Their Noses

"On the season, Mathews has a 3.73 ERA and has struck out 10.45 batters per nine innings, but his BB/9 is a crazy high 6.73 while using the Major League baseball," Jacobs wrote. "It's been a collection of good and bad, but things have seemed to get better as the year went on. In August, Mathews limited opposing hitters to a .193 batting average with a 2.27 ERA in 31.2 innings, striking out 41 batters and walking just 13.

"Going into spring training, Mathews will have a chance to earn a spot in the Cardinals' rotation, but may need just a bit more time in Memphis before they give him the call. Before the 2025 season, Mathews was consistently ranked as a top 50 prospect in baseball, but things are a bit more inconsistent now on whether he's even a top 100 prospect to various talent evaluators. Even so, he is still one of the few prospects in the Cardinals' organization who boasts front-of-the-rotation upside, and so he maintains his ranking on my list."

Mathews' future will hinge on his walk rate. If he can reel in the walks and stay in the zone more consistently, there aren't going to be very many minor league bats that can consistently find the barrel off him.

But it's a huge ask to cut his walk rate in half, which would place him around league average. Still, the lefty has "potential ace" written all over him. He's dominated the minor leagues when he's around the strike zone. Next season, he will likely have a chance to showcase his dominant abilities at the big-league level. It will all depend on his strike percentage and walk rate.