Cardinals’ biggest steal in 2026 MLB Draft

It has been a good week for the St. Louis Cardinals as Jordan Walker won the Home Run Derby while inspiring others to follow his baseball path. Also, the Cardinals are thrilled with their biggest steal of the 2026 MLB Draft.

With Trevor Condon slotted as a top-10 talent, the Cardinals were scouring their draft board for the right fit at No. 13. However, they got a big surprise when he remained on the board as their pick came around.

The Cardinals and manager Oliver Marmol have high hopes for the high school outfielder.

Cardinals get draft steal in OF Trevor Condon

There was a double bonus as Condon landed where he wanted to be, according to MLB.com.

“Coming into it, I felt like I had a great relationship with the Cardinals,” Condon said. “I felt like that was going to be my ceiling of how high I went up. Blessed that it was my ceiling and my floor today.

“I’m very happy to be a Cardinal. I have a great relationship with most of the staff down there. I’m excited to get to meet everybody behind the scenes, as well. I’m just genuinely blessed.”

The Cardinals’ gain was a loss for the University of Tennessee. Condon had committed to play for the Volunteers.

“I’m definitely going to play professional ball,” Condon said about the choice between the Vols and Cardinals.

The Georgia Gatorade Player of the Year, Condon hit .504 with nine homers, 42 RBIs, and 15 stolen bases for Etowah High School in 36 games.

And he gets high marks from scouts, according to MLB.com.

Trevor Condon has drawn comparisons to Pete Crow-Armstrong

“He may have the best combination of hitting ability and speed in this high school crop,” MLB.com wrote. “Though Condon has an unconventional left-handed stroke with an upright barrel, he makes good swing decisions and regular contact to all fields. He has enough bat speed and strength to get to average power, though it shows up more in batting practice than in games at this point. He hits balls hard but has yet to pull them in the air consistently.

“Condon has double-plus speed and likes to use it, playing with constant intensity as he tries to make things happen on the bases and runs down balls in the gaps. He’s a quality center fielder who will stay there at the next level, with the added bonus of solid arm strength.”

The Crow-Armstrong comp isn’t lost on Condon.

“I see my game as just a speedster who’s dangerous in the box,” Condon said. “A center fielder who takes control and command. I expect myself to just grow and, not perfect, but make permanent, the route decisions, stealing bags and just the little things that you don’t really look at as an 18-year-old.

“I’m excited to use what pro facilities have for me to get me to the next level.”

And effort should never be a problem for Condon. He said he got here the old-fashioned way.

“Truthfully, it comes from all the hard work,” Condon said of where that confidence is found. “It comes from putting your head down and just sticking to what you know. For me, that’s just getting one percent better every day.”

Cardinals didn’t stop thievery with Trevor Condon

It should be noted that the Cardinals also got two other draft steals. In Round 2, they selected shortstop Rocco Maniscalco. And in Round 10, they grabbed RHP Nick Bonn. Both were potential steals, according to MLB.com.

“Super young player, reclassified, really good defender,” Jonathan Mayo said of Maniscalco. “He’s going to play shortstop for a long time. He was very impressive at the [Draft] Combine, and I think they may have gotten a first-round talent here in the second.”

As for Bonnie, he led Division I pitchers with 17 saves.

“It’s a real fastball, it sits around 95, he’s touched triple digits,” Mayo said. “He’s got a good splitter and a sweeper in there also. To get a guy like this, an interesting relief arm in the 10th round, I’m curious to see what happens with him and whether he’s the kind of guy who ends up spending some time in a big league bullpen.”