Cardinals Phenom Could Shock St. Louis, Per Insider

The St. Louis Cardinals had a great week.

Even without playing any games, the Cardinals thrived thanks primarily to the 2025 Major League Baseball Draft. St. Louis had a great draft on paper and it started with flamethrower Liam Doyle with the No. 5 overall pick.

Doyle already has gotten a lot of praise and ESPN's Kiley McDaniel projected that he will be the first new prospect to the big leagues for St. Louis.

"Quickest to the big leagues: Liam Doyle (No. 5 overall). He could be up there tomorrow, but the Cards haven't taken a lot of pitchers like him in the past, so I'm not sure how they'll handle him. His teammate Tanner Franklin is likely to be developed as a starter, too, but could move quickly as a reliever...

"One big thought: The first draft with the influence of incoming president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom looks a little similar to some past drafts (Mitchell, Crossland, Young, Matt Miura, Payton Graham, Ryan Weingartner all feel like guys they would've taken before Bloom arrived) but Doyle at the top (stuff over command, starter/relief question) was a different type and you could argue the same with Franklin. I like the evolution, for the record."

With mock drafts popping up ahead of the draft, Doyle didn't seem like a likely option to be available. Luckily, he was. Will St. Louis get him up to the big leagues quickly? The 2026 season seems like the earliest possible.